Reconvening of Kurdistan Parliament postponed to Friday

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The leading political parties in the Kurdistan Region have agreed to postpone the first session of the reconvened Parliament, originally announced to be held on Thursday, to Friday.

Omed Khoshnaw, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Bloc in the Kurdistan Region's Parliament, told Kurdistan 24 that the political parties agreed to hold the session on Friday at 7 PM local time.

The Kurdish MP did not mention whether the Gorran [Change] Movement and Kurdistan Islamic Group(KIG) MPs would participate or boycott the inaugural session.

Together, Gorran and KIG hold 30 seats in the Kurdistan Region Parliament out of a total of 111. The parties are expected to form the official opposition in the reactivated Parliament.

According to information obtained by Kurdistan 24, Jaafar Iminky, the Deputy Parliamentary Speaker, has called on MPs from every bloc to attend the special session on Friday which will exclusively focus on the referendum and the right to self-determination of the people of Kurdistan.

In a statement on Tuesday, the media office of the Kurdistan Region's Parliament announced that Parliament would be resume and hold its first session on Thursday, eleven days ahead of the referendum on independence for the Kurdistan Region.

The Parliament was dismantled in late 2015 following a political dispute between the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Gorran (Change) party.

"As the Kurdistan Region marches toward its destiny, the Kurdistan Region's Parliament needs to play its role in this historic and momentous event," the statement released by the Parliament's media office read.

Editing by G.H. Renaud