Senior KDP delegation visits PUK office to end acrimony

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region  —  A high-profile delegation from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) visited the Erbil office of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) on Monday, seeking reconciliation after tension between the two parties culminated in the aiming of gunfire at their offices.

Rebaz Birkoti, head of the PUK bloc in Erbil's provincial council, told Rudaw that both parties “discussed the recent incident which concerned the people of Kurdistan. Media has exaggerated it.”

Birkoti said the two parties will form a joint committee to solve “such issues,” adding that the period of heightened tension is “coming to an end.” said the two parties will form a joint committee to solve “such issues,” adding that the period of heightened tension is “coming to an end.”

The current spat between the ruling parties began on Thursday when Mahmoud Sangawi, a senior PUK official, was blocked from entering Erbil to attend a party meeting.

The KDP has argued that Sangawi was stopped briefly so that the Smaquli checkpoint security forces could get his entrance permission from higher-ranking officers, but that the PUK official refused to wait. However, Birkoti told Rudaw that Sangawi was held near the checkpoint for too long a time period. 

The KDP office in the PUK-held Sulaimani province was attacked in the early hours of Friday. A PUK office in the KDP-held Erbil province was fired at later that day.

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed on Saturday vowed court trials would take place upon arrest of the attackers.

"Whoever acts contrary to the law and disrespects party offices is acting against the policies of the KRG. Therefore whoever or any side is behind them, it must be dealt with by law and the criminals must be tried," Ahmed announced.

The suspected perpetrators of both shootings have since been arrested. 

Kosrat Rasul, acting leader of the PUK, sent a letter to KDP leader Masoud Barzani to ask for an explanation regarding Sangawi's denial of entry, according to Birkoti.

PUK media reported that the two parties also discussed issues beyond the shootings, including the appointment of a new governor for the disputed Kirkuk province and other local issues. 

Along with the Change Movement (Gorran), the KDP and PUK recently formed the new cabinet of the KRG. The three of them have agreed to participate in the upcoming Iraqi provincial elections in Kirkuk and Nineveh provinces along with other Kurdish parties in April 2020.  

Both parties have also agreed to appoint Tayb Jabar as the new governor of Kirkuk province, a role currently held by acting governor Rakan al-Jabouri. Jabouri was appointed to the role after PUK governor Najmaddin Karim was ousted from office for supporting the September 2017 Kurdistan independence referendum. 

The KDP and PUK have been ruling the Kurdistan Region since its formation in 1992, despite the outbreak of a deadly civil war between the two at its beginning.