FLAGS flew at half-mast across Iraq’s northern autonomous Kurdish region yesterday as Iraqi Kurds began observing a week of mourning following the death of the country’s former president, Jalal Talabani, once a symbol of unity.
Talabani’s death in a Berlin hospital on Tuesday, at the age of 83, came just days after Iraqi Kurds’ controversial referendum on independence that has angered Baghdad and the region.
A longtime Kurdish guerrilla leader, in 2005 Talabani became the head of state of what was supposed to be a new Iraq two years after the country was freed from the rule of Saddam Hussein. He was seen as a unifying elder statesman who could soothe tempers among Iraq’s Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds.
He suffered a stroke in 2012, after which he was moved to Germany for treatment and faded from Iraq’s political life.
Sadi Ahmed Pire, of the Kurdish party which Talabani headed, said yesterday that his burial would take place in the city of Sulaimaniyah over the weekend.
Following news of Talabani’s death, leaders across Iraq and beyond released statements expressing their condolences.
Talabani was “a longstanding figure in the fight against dictatorship and a sincere partner in building a new democratic Iraq”, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement posted on Facebook.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here