On 42nd Anniversary of Barzani Genocide, President Barzani Warns Iraq Cannot Achieve Stability While Chauvinistic Mentality Persists
Barzani blamed a chauvinistic and hostile ideology for these crimes—an ideology, he warned, that continues to threaten Iraq’s stability.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — President Masoud Barzani on Thursday commemorated the 42nd anniversary of the Barzani genocide, remembering the mass killing of thousands of Barzani men by Iraq’s former regime and warning that Iraq will never find peace as long as the same chauvinistic mindset persists.
In a statement, Barzani recalled the atrocities committed against the Kurdish people over decades, emphasizing the horrific crime committed in 1983 when more than 8,000 Barzani males, aged between 9 and 90, were forcibly taken and executed in the deserts of southern Iraq.
"Throughout the years, hardly a day passes without us remembering a tragedy, crime, or injustice committed by successive Iraqi governments against the people of Kurdistan," Barzani said. "Forty-two years ago today, the former Iraqi regime brutally rounded up and massacred thousands of Barzani men in the southern deserts."
He described this crime as part of a broader genocidal campaign against the Kurdish people, listing other atrocities including the enforced disappearance of 12,000 Fayli Kurds, the Anfal campaigns in Germiyan and Badinan, the chemical attack on Halabja, Arabization policies, and the forced displacement of countless Kurds.
Barzani blamed a chauvinistic and hostile ideology for these crimes—an ideology, he warned, that continues to threaten Iraq’s stability. “That same mindset of hatred and denial was behind all those crimes. Unfortunately, some still operate with that same mentality today. Everyone must understand that until such thinking is eradicated, Iraq will never know true stability.”
The president expressed deep gratitude to the people of Erbil's plains, Harir, and Soran, who stood in solidarity with the Barzani families during their time of suffering. He also praised the enduring strength of the Anfal victims' families, especially the women who have borne the pain of losing their loved ones for decades.
“In this solemn remembrance,” Barzani said, “we send thousands of salutations to the pure souls of the Barzani victims of Anfal and all martyrs of Anfal and the path to Kurdistan’s freedom.”
Today (July 31) marks the 42nd anniversary of the Anfal genocide against the Barzanis. This tragic chapter signaled the beginning of a broader genocidal policy against the Kurdish people in the second half of the 20th century under Iraq’s former Ba'ath regime.
The systematic annihilation of the Barzanis was executed in several phases. Initially, many Barzani families were displaced from their homeland and forcibly resettled in tightly controlled military compounds. These relocations—ostensibly for “security” reasons—were preparatory steps for the deadly purge that followed.
Eventually, the Iraqi regime launched its brutal crackdown, which led to the enforced disappearance and execution of more than 8,000 Barzani men and boys. The operation unfolded in stages and became a defining part of what would later be recognized as the genocidal Anfal campaign.
