Kurds and Sunnis of Diyala town ask for Peshmerga protection
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Residents of the Diyala town of Sharaban (Muqdadiya) need law and order restored in their town and they call on the Kurdish Peshmerga for this task, says the former governor.
“People in Diyala and especially in the town of Sharaban are seeking Peshmerga’s help,” Omar Humery, Diyala’s former governor told Rudaw.
“Kurdish Peshmerga forces are non-sectarian,” he added.
Humery believes that the local security forces are not up to the task of protecting people’s lives in the town.
He accuses the Shiite militia in particular, of discrimination and “seeking to change the demography of the area and push out Sunni people from the town.”
Sharaban is a Kurdish town but in recent years sectarian violence has forced many of its residents to flee to the Kurdistan Region.
Humery said that the Shiite militia who came to the area last year to fight Islamic State (ISIS) militants are now harassing the local population of Kurds and Sunnis.
“Several people were abducted and executed at the hands of the militias,” he said.
He believes that the power of the Shiite militia exceeds that of the government.
The militiamen did not even let Iraqi Prime Miniser Haidar al-Abadi enter Sharaban during his recent visit to Diyala, said Humery.
According to the former governor, more than 200 families feel stranded inside Sharaban while water and food is running out.
“Dozens of people have been abducted and their fate still unknown,” he said.
Diyala was struck by a wave of sectarian attacks on Shiite cafes and Sunni mosques last week which prompted Ayatollah Sistani to call for an end to the violence.
“People in Diyala and especially in the town of Sharaban are seeking Peshmerga’s help,” Omar Humery, Diyala’s former governor told Rudaw.
“Kurdish Peshmerga forces are non-sectarian,” he added.
Humery believes that the local security forces are not up to the task of protecting people’s lives in the town.
He accuses the Shiite militia in particular, of discrimination and “seeking to change the demography of the area and push out Sunni people from the town.”
Sharaban is a Kurdish town but in recent years sectarian violence has forced many of its residents to flee to the Kurdistan Region.
Humery said that the Shiite militia who came to the area last year to fight Islamic State (ISIS) militants are now harassing the local population of Kurds and Sunnis.
“Several people were abducted and executed at the hands of the militias,” he said.
He believes that the power of the Shiite militia exceeds that of the government.
The militiamen did not even let Iraqi Prime Miniser Haidar al-Abadi enter Sharaban during his recent visit to Diyala, said Humery.
According to the former governor, more than 200 families feel stranded inside Sharaban while water and food is running out.
“Dozens of people have been abducted and their fate still unknown,” he said.
Diyala was struck by a wave of sectarian attacks on Shiite cafes and Sunni mosques last week which prompted Ayatollah Sistani to call for an end to the violence.