Communique from the Kurdistan Region Presidency to the European Union

Kurdistan Region has been an outstanding model of stability, democracy and peaceful coexistence in Iraq during the last decade. Kurdistan has been a safe haven for all Iraqi components such as, Arabs, Turkomen, Christians, and others. Since 2006, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi internally displaced people have taken shelter in Kurdistan, fleeing violence and bloodshed in the other parts of Iraq.

Currently, this safe haven is under serious danger by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). Last week, the ISIS militants launched a widespread attack against the territories of the Kurdistan Region, especially in Sinjar, which is predominantly inhabited by Yazidis, and areas to the east and north part of the city of Mosul, which have been the homeland of Christians for thousands of years. The recent ISIS aggression on the Kurdistan Region resulted in the killing of hundreds of people and displacement of around one million people.

Despite facing serious humanitarian and security challenges, the Iraqi government has only played a very limited role in supporting the Kurdish Peshmerga forces and alleviating the suffering of the refugees and IDPs. Thus, the KRG is under tremendous humanitarian and security pressure. The KRG is doing whatever it can to provide humanitarian relief for the refugees and IDPs, and at the same time the Kurdish Peshmerga forces are fighting ISIS militants on behalf of the world. While we appreciate the support we have received from our friends and allies, we call upon international community to provide further humanitarian and military assistance.

The Kurdistan Region Government respectfully requests the members of the European Union to urgently come forward and offer humanitarian aid to the IDPs who have taken refuge in the Kurdistan Region. It is worth mentioning that the displaced people are suffering severely due to the lack of shelter, food and other basic needs. Urgent aid is needed to save lives of thousands of people. We also call upon the members of the EU to provide the Peshmerga forces with necessary arms to deter ISIS offences and protect civilians and displaced people. The Kurdish forces are in an asymmetrical war against an organized and well-armed terrorist group. With no doubt, rapid equipping of Peshmerga forces with heavy and sophisticated weapons will change the equation in the battlefield in favor of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

We hope that the members of the European Union will urgently and positively respond to our request.

Sincerely,

Fuad Hussein
Chief of Staff
Kurdistan Region Presidency