PUK Official: Anfal has Become Kurdish People's Identity

Kurdistan 07:53 PM - 2025-04-12

Anfal victims' coffins.

The Anfal tragedy has become the Kurdish people's identity, and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) needs to make it a top priority, according to a member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan's (PUK) Leadership Council. He emphasised that international crimes continue to pose a threat to Kurdish people, particularly in other parts of Kurdistan. He highlighted that there are over 150 mass graves in Iraq and commended the First Lady of Iraq for her efforts to hasten the exhumation of the victims' remains.

In an interview with PUKMEDIA, Salar Mahmoud, a member of the PUK Leadership Council and the head of the PUK's Garmian Organisations Centre, stated: "As in previous years, the anniversary of the Anfal operations and genocide will be formally observed on 14 April."

He pointed out that the United Nations and the international community were exceptionally negligent about this crime at the time, and that it is now their responsibility to try to stop similar atrocities against the Kurdish people from happening again and to make amends for the victims' families.

Anfal is our identity

Mahmoud added: "As Kurdish people, we view genocide and the Anfal crimes as part of who we are. We want to use them to remind the international community that the rights of Kurds in the Middle East need to be properly protected. Additionally, Kurdistan's media, particularly the PUK's media, has an obligation to focus more on the Anfal issue."

"We have not been able to adequately publicise the Anfal and genocide, even though we commemorate the occasion annually," he explained. "This means we have to put in more effort here and keep the tragedy alive in our minds."

We are still facing the threat of international crimes

The head of the Garmian Organisations Centre further stated: "I urge experts and academics to focus more on this tragedy from an intellectual standpoint and to provide more thorough explanations of it through the media."

He emphasised: "The Anfal crimes and other crimes must remind us that we are still facing the threat of international crimes, especially in areas outside the Kurdistan Region's administration and other parts of Kurdistan."

More than 150 mass graves in Iraq
Moreover, Mahmoud explained: "There are more than 150 mass graves in Iraq, the majority of which contain the remains of Kurdish citizens killed in the Anfal campaigns." 

He noted: "One significant contributor to the exhumation of mass graves was First Lady Shanaz Ibrahim Ahmed. At her expense, the remains of several graves were exhumed and sent back to Kurdistan. Additionally, the procedure for collecting blood samples from the relatives of the victims and performing DNA testing has started and needs to go on."

He added: "Further follow-up must be conducted by the Martyrs Foundation and the Iraqi Council of Ministers to identify and exhume the graves in accordance with international standards. The remains must continue to be examined and returned to Kurdistan for proper burials. The families of the victims must also be compensated, as the mass graves are compelling evidence that the Anfal crime was carried out in a brutal manner against humanity."

Compensation for the Families of Anfal Victims

Mahmoud said: "Compensation is a legal matter, as genocide cannot be compensated for from a moral and emotional standpoint. However, it is the duty of the international community and the Iraqi government to work to rebuild the areas affected by the Anfal campaigns, and it is the duty of the KRG must prioritise the Anfal issue." 

He emphasised that "there is a significant shortcoming when it comes to the Anfal file, as it is a multidimensional issue."

Mahmoud noted: "The Kurdistan Parliament, the Iraqi Council of Representatives, and the Supreme Court for the Crimes of the Former Regime recognised the Anfal crime as a genocide and enacted laws for it. However, political considerations prevent the federal government from compensating the victims' families and rebuilding their areas. We can work on this issue through our unity and solidarity in Baghdad, and by serving the families of the Anfal victims in the Kurdistan Region, to alleviate some of the grief and pain they have suffered for decades."

Iraq's fallen Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath dictatorial regime launched the Anfal campaign in February 1988, targeting Kurdish civilians and lasting until September of that year. It is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous cases of state-sponsored mass murder during Iraq's Ba'ath regime. 

The military and regular forces, including the First Corps in Kirkuk and the Fifth Corps in Erbil, as well as the Air Force, Special Forces, Republican Guard, Commando Forces, security and intelligence services, military intelligence, and chemical and biological weapons departments, were all mobilised to carry out these operations. The Anfal atrocities killed over 182,000 Kurdish civilians, including women, children, and the elderly.

According to statistics, 270 mass graves have been discovered since Iraq's liberation, with many more still to be found. The majority of these graves are concentrated in the area between Diwaniyah, Samawah, and Najaf provinces.  



PUKMEDIA