ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Three people, including a journalist, from northeast Syria’s (Rojava) Kurdish opposition group were briefly arrested on Monday by local security forces (Asayish) for organizing events to commemorate the 42nd anniversary of the death of Kurdish leader Mullah Mustafa Barzani, claimed an official from the opposition. A top security official denied the arrests. “Our local councils in Girke Lege [Al-Muabbada], Chil Agha, and Tirbespi [Al-Qahtaniyah], decided to gather in Haleq village at 2 pm. An Asayesh patrol showed up and stopped them [while they were on their way to the village]. They [Asayish] arrested Fawaz Ali and Bahzad Barozhi and confiscated their speakers and megaphones. They were both released after the event ended,” Suleiman Oso, a top official from the Kurdish National Council (ENKS) told Rudaw English. However, he added that the group continued out with the event, ignoring the Asayish pressure. Barzani was born on March 14, 1903 and led Kurdish fighters for decades in the fight against several Iraqi regimes and helped Iranian Kurds establish the short-lived Mahabad Republic. He died at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington DC on March 1, 1979 after developing lung cancer. Oso also said that one of their journalist members, Ahmed Sofi, was also arrested in Derik (Al-Malikiyah) for organizing a commemoration event for Barzani there. However, he was later released after colleagues carried out the event. ENKS was also not allowed to hold a similar event in Amude on the grounds that they did not have permission. The event was called off by organizers. A top security official in Rojava, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Rudaw English that “no arrests were made in these areas,” denying that they tried to prevent the events from taking place. This comes as suggestions of the resumption of unity talks between the ENKS and the ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) emerge. The talks have been stalled since summer 2020. The talks, aimed at a unified Kurdish stance and power share in Rojava, have been taking place since 2014. US officials in Syria mediate between both parties and are seen as the guarantors of the talks. ENKS offices were closed and members arrested before the talks resumed in late 2019. However, in recent months they have reopened most of their offices in Rojava. The opposition umbrella group is affiliated to the Kurdistan Region’s ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) which was founded by Mullah Mustafa Barzani in 1946 and is currently headed by Masoud Barzani.
