Faili Kurds to create own militia, combat threats in southern Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Kurdistan24) – Faili Kurds say they want to establish a voluntary militia to defend themselves from the rising security threats they encounter in Baghdad and other provinces in southern Iraq.

Kurds in Baghdad say some unidentified group has always threatened them but this has intensified in the past few weeks.

They mention that they have been receiving threatening letters inside their houses and religious shrines which have instigating a sense of insecurity in the community.

Faili Kurds say they are demonized for their ethnicity and for supporting the upcoming Kurdistan Independence referendum on Sep. 25, 2017.

“The threats have moved to a higher level.  Recently, the security forces foiled a car bomb that wanted to target a market located in our neighborhood,” Talib Newroz, a Faili activist in Baghdad told Kurdistan24.

After the declaration of the referendum date earlier in June by the President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani, Faili Kurds sent a letter to Barzani expressing support to the referendum and calling for the inclusion of the Failis in Nineveh Province located in northern Iraq.

“There is a language in Baghdad which is the language of weapon and force,” Sheikh Samir Faili, another Kurdish resident in Baghdad told Kurdistan24.

“We are trying to establish a voluntary force from our sons and relatives to protect ourselves from the dangers we face in Baghdad, Diyala, Basrah and other provinces in Iraq. The force will be about 500 people,” Faili added, saying they have weapons too.

He explained that the threats are usually made to intimidate Faili Kurds into leaving their homes and the province so that later their properties can be confiscated.

Many Faili families have in the past moved from Baghdad and Diyala to the Kurdistan Region because they feel unsafe. The risks are on the rise again in the southern parts of Iraq, according to some Failis in Baghdad.

Previously, Saad Mutalibi, a member of the Baghdad Provincial Council, openly expressed hostility toward Kurds living in Baghdad and other provinces of Iraq.

He stated that Kurds residing in Baghdad and other areas of Iraq should be dismissed and have their Iraqi citizenships revoked if Kurdistan voted for secession in the upcoming referendum on Sep. 25, 2017. His comments outraged many.

Recently, a Kurdish member of the Iraqi Parliament Amin Baker in a statement called on the federal government of Iraq to protect Faili Kurds from the threats they encounter on different levels.

Editing by Ava Homa