PM Barzani, KNCNA leader discuss status of Kurdish diaspora in US, Canada
Barzani and Salih agreed that unifying efforts of the diaspora are crucial to achieving Kurdish human rights and spreading the plight of the ethnic group in the West.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and the president of the Kurdish National Congress of North America (KNCNA) on Monday discussed the situation of the Kurdish diaspora in the United States and Canada.
The premier received KNCNA President Ibrahim Salih and his accompanying delegation in Erbil, where they discussed the current status of affairs of the diaspora, in addition to the organization’s activities.
Barzani and Salih agreed that unifying efforts of the diaspora are crucial to achieving Kurdish human rights and spreading the plight of the ethnic group in the West.
The KNCNA, founded in July 1988, is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting and advancing the Kurdish people's political, economic, and social rights. The organization works to unite the Kurds in North America while promoting their right to self-determination. It also works to raise awareness about Kurdish struggles and provide support for Kurds living in areas of conflict.
Reportedly, in the United States, there are about 15,000 to 20,000 Kurds, and in Canada, there are more than 6,000 Kurds.
The first wave of Kurdish immigration to the US occurred in the 1970s, with a second, larger wave arriving as refugees in the 1990s after the ethnic group suffered a brutal onslaught by the Baathist regime of Saddam Hussein.
