Al-Kadhimi visits Anfal genocide site

On Thursday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi visited one of the Anfal genocide sites during his visit to the Kurdistan Region. 

A statement by the Iraqi government received by Shafaq News agency stated that Al-Kadhimi “visited one of the Anfal genocide sites, laid a wreath and read Al-Fatihah as a mercy and remembrance of the victims of the incident.”

The statement indicated that the PM met with the families of the victims, and praised their sacrifices that paved the way towards building a free and democratic Iraq.”

The site that Al-Kadhimi visited was The Castle or Nazarki, which witnessed part of the Anfal Genocide in 1988.

The former Iraqi regime launched genocidal campaigns against the Kurds in the name of "Anfal" in the 1980s, which led to the killing of at least 180,000 people, including many children, elderly and women.

Al-Kadhimi’s visit to the Region, on Thursday, began in Erbil, where he met the Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani and the head of the regional government, Masrour Barzani.

He discussed several files in Erbil, including the pending disputes between Baghdad and Erbil, the fight against ISIS remnants, as well as the holding of early parliamentary elections.

It is expected that Al-Kadhimi will meet the President of the region, Nechirvan Barzani, in Erbil, before heading to Al-Sulaymaniyah and from there to Halabja.

This is the first visit by Al-Kadhimi to the Kurdistan Region since he took office last May.