Halabja Province Sets Solemn Stage for 38th Anniversary of Darkest Chapter in Kurdish History
Halabja province announced preparations for events marking the thirty-eight anniversary of the March 16 chemical attack, with plans highlighting legal accountability, international recognition, and victims’ rights.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - In Halabja, preparations are underway for a solemn and expanded commemoration of one of the darkest chapters in Kurdish history, as local authorities move to mark the thirty-eight anniversary of the chemical attack with ceremonies reflecting the city’s status as a newly established province in the Kurdistan Region.
Halabja province announced preparations to commemorate the thirty-eight anniversary of the chemical bombardment of the city, confirming that a range of events will be held this year to reflect developments befitting the occasion. The announcement followed a meeting of the provincial administration and relevant local authorities, during which readiness and planning for the March 16 commemoration were discussed.
In a statement, the provincial administration said a general plan and program for the anniversary had been presented, with emphasis placed on organizing official ceremonies that address the international dimension of the crime, its legal ramifications, and the responsibilities of state authorities toward the rights of the people of the area. The statement added that several new proposals had also been put forward to ensure the anniversary is observed in the best possible manner.
On March 16, 1988, during the final stages of the eight-year Iraq-Iran war, the former Iraqi Baathist regime launched a chemical attack on Halabja, using mustard gas, cyanide, sarin, and tabun. The attack killed thousands of civilians, including men, women, and children, and displaced 140,000 people. Entire neighborhoods and surrounding townships, including Sirwan, Khurmal, Biara, and Sayyid Sadiq, were destroyed, with more than 25,000 homes reduced to rubble and numerous villages erased.
After the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, the case was referred to the Iraqi High Criminal Court in 2007, which in 2010 officially recognized the Halabja attack as genocide, a decision endorsed by the Iraqi Council of Representatives and the Federal Government. Despite this recognition, successive Iraqi governments have not provided meaningful compensation to victims and their families, limiting responses to symbolic measures.
Survivors continue to suffer long-term health complications. A specialized hospital opened in Halabja on March 7, 2019, but shortages of essential medication persist, forcing many patients to seek treatment elsewhere. Around four hundred survivors are currently receiving medical care.
Halabja was designated a province by the Kurdistan Regional Government on March 13, 2014, becoming the fourth province of the Kurdistan Region. Since then, reconstruction and development efforts have expanded under the ninth KRG cabinet, with new institutions established and projects launched across infrastructure, healthcare, education, agriculture, and tourism.
As Halabja prepares to remember its victims once again, the upcoming anniversary stands as both a moment of mourning and a renewed call for justice, recognition, and the fulfillment of long-standing rights for survivors and their families.