Masrour Barzani: 'Fight against IS a long battle'

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – The Chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council (KRSC) on Sunday stated the permanent removal of the Islamic State (IS) was going to take a long time.

Masrour Barzani, Chancellor of the KRSC, told Reuters in an interview that eliminating IS from its stronghold Mosul was not enough to defeat the insurgents.

Moreover, Barzani stated the extremist group’s radical ideology might survive even if they are removed from Mosul.

“The fight against IS is going to be a long fight,” Barzani said, adding the offensive should not only be militarily based but also economically and ideologically.

After Peshmerga forces had broken through IS’ first lines of defense, the Iraqi security forces made quick progress in the fight against the insurgents in eastern Mosul, Barzani explained.

As IS extremists are becoming more desperate, expectations are that they might fight more fiercely as the Iraqi security forces close in, the KRSC Chancellor continued.

Barzani stated IS uses many different Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and tactics against Kurdish and Iraqi forces.

“In one house they are putting one IED and trying to hide it, and once it explodes then the entire neighborhood explodes,” he explained.

Barzani called upon Iraq’s sects and ethnic communities to set aside their differences otherwise the country would face long-term instability.

“Winning the peace after winning the war is equally important,” Barzani told Reuters.

“The number one point to prevent the rise of terrorist and radical organizations is to make sure there is political reconciliation and a political agreement among all the components so that no one will feel like an outcast,” Barzani said.

“IS is the byproduct of the result of a political failure, the political system that failed in this country,” he concluded.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany