President Barzani marks 52nd anniversary of Qaladiza bombing

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani on Friday commemorated the 52nd anniversary of the bombing of Qaladiza, honoring the victims of the former Ba'ath Party regime’s assault on the Kurdish city.

On the morning of April 24, 1974, Iraqi warplanes attacked Qaladiza using prohibited napalm bombs, in retaliation for mounting Kurdish demands for autonomy. Kurdish leaders at the time had urged Baghdad to honor the 1970 Iraqi-Kurdish Autonomy Agreement.

“Today marks the 52nd anniversary of the Qaladiza and Sulaimani University bombardment. On April 24, 1974, the Iraqi regime carried out an attack that killed and wounded countless students, teachers, and civilians - a tragedy we remember with heavy hearts,” President Barzani said in a statement released by the Kurdistan Region Presidency.

He described the attack on both the city and its Sulaimani University branch as a “misguided attempt to undermine the determination of the people of Kurdistan.”

“The sacrifices of the martyrs have only strengthened the resolve of the Kurdistan liberation movement and intensified the march toward freedom,” the president added.

“We emphasize that Qaladiza and the Pishder region, which have consistently stood as bastions of revolution and sacrifice, deserve our utmost care and serious consideration in all aspects,” he said.

The Qaladiza bombing was one of the earliest attacks targeting Kurdish civilians.

Kurds under Saddam Hussein endured large-scale atrocities, including the killing of over 5,000 people in the Halabja chemical attack in 1988 and the mass murder of more than 182,000 others during the notorious eight-year Anfal campaign in the 1980s.

Human rights organizations and Kurdish activists have repeatedly called for the Qaladiza bombing to be formally recognized as a war crime.