Politics

Kurdish, foreign officials send condolences to Gorran Leader’s family

Top Kurdish officials and foreign representatives sent their condolences to the family of Nawshirwan Mustafa following his death on Friday.

Sangar Ali 2017/05/19 11:49

kurdistan Gorran Kurdistan Iraq Change Movement Masrour Barzani

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – Top Kurdish officials and foreign representatives sent their condolences to the family of Nawshirwan Mustafa following his death on Friday.

In separate statements, President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani and Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani expressed their sympathies to the family of Gorran Leader Nawshirwan Mustafa and the party's members and supporters.

“I hope the Gorran Movement and supporters of Nawshirwan Mustafa will continue to serve Kurdistan and the joint objectives of our people,” the Kurdish Premier said in his statement.

Foreign consuls and representative offices in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq also sent their condolences to Gorran.

“Very sad to learn of the passing of Kurdish leader Noshirwan Mustafa. A true patriot. May God rest his soul,” the British Consulate General in Erbil posted on its official Facebook account.

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) of Iraq Jan Kubis extended his sympathy to the Kurdish figure's family.

“Mr. Nawshirwan Mustafa is remembered as a critically important pro-reform, pro-democracy leader who energized the political landscape in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and galvanized the people with his political vision,” Kubis stated. “His loss will be strongly felt but his legacy will live on.”

On Friday, the head of Gorran Movement Nawshirwan Mustafa, 73, died in his hometown province of Sulaimani in the Kurdistan Region.

The 73-years-old leader was born in Sulaimani in 1944. He left the Kurdistan Region and flew to the United Kingdom in Sep. 2016 to receive medical treatment.

Mustafa was one of the leaders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), but in 2009 broke away from the PUK to establish Gorran (Change Movement) party, due to the escalating political infighting in the PUK.

Currently, Gorran holds 24 seats in the parliament of the Kurdistan Region, the second largest party after the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).

Editing by G. H. Renaud