ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi national fencing team on Friday withdrew from the individual World Fencing Championship in Istanbul after they were scheduled to compete against Israel. Baghdad has barred all forms of dealing with the Jewish state. "The Iraqi national team withdrew from the individual races in the World Fencing Championship, which is taking place in Istanbul and is a qualifier for the Paris Olympics, after the lottery pitted it against the team of the occupying Israeli entity," Iraq's Fencing Federation said. The Iraqi parliament in May of last year passed a bill criminalizing all relations with Israel and making it punishable by death. The law requires almost all officials, including those in the Kurdistan Region, government institutions, and media to refrain from establishing relations with Israel. "The decision to withdraw came in compliance with the law criminalizing normalization approved by the Iraqi parliament, in rejection of the occupying Israeli entity, and in solidarity with the Palestinian cause," the statement added. While the Iraqi side has withdrawn from the individual competition, it will still participate in the team matches. Iraq’s hardline stance against Israel is despite recent a US-led Middle East peace initiative to normalize of ties with Israel, called the Abraham Accords. Four countries - the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Bahrain, and Morocco - have announced agreements with Israel. A conference in September 2021 advocating for Iraq to join the accords was met with widespread condemnation from the public and officials. An Iraqi court issued arrest warrants for three people accused of participating in the conference. A large population of Jews used to call Iraq home. In 1941, the Farhud, a violent pogrom, marked the beginning of the end of one of Iraq's oldest communities. After the anti-Semitic violence of the Farhud, more than 120,000 Jews were airlifted out of Iraq in Operation Ezra and Nehemiah.
