ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The health of Kurdish opposition leader Shaswar Abdulwahid has deteriorated since his recent arrest in Sulaimani, his New Generation Movement (NGM) said on Saturday.
The party told Rudaw that with concerns about his health, Abdulwahid’s family and relatives will visit him in jail.
Abdulwahid, leader of Kurdistan Region’s largest opposition party, is facing several charges. He was arrested last week by Sulaimani security forces and appeared in court on Thursday.
A judicial decree dated August 3 revealed that Abdulwahid had been sentenced in absentia to six months in prison under Article 431 of the Iraqi Penal Code, which pertains to making serious threats against others, their property, or their reputation. The charge carries a potential sentence of detention or a fine, classifying it as a lesser offense.
The original complaint was filed in 2021 by a former member of the Kurdistan Region’s parliament.
"We have not been informed about the deterioration of Shaswar Abdulwahid's health condition,” a court spokesperson told Rudaw on Saturday.
"Whether it's the leader of New Generation or any prisoner whose health condition deteriorates, they will either be transferred to a hospital or a special doctor will be provided for them,” he added.
NGM has criticized the arrest of its leader, labeling it an “abduction” carried out without prior notice. The party alleged that security forces affiliated with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) were behind the arrest, and directly accused PUK leader Bafel Talabani and deputy prime minister and leading PUK figure Qubad Talabani of standing behind it.
Srwa Abdulwahid, the opposition leader’s sister and head of the party’s bloc in the federal parliament, on Saturday accused the PUK of “violating the law and preventing his family and comrades from visiting him. This behavior is arbitrary and illegal and confirms that the case is purely political, and the public will not remain silent about these violations.”
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