28 02 2007 - OUTSANDING KURDISH POLITICIAN BEARING WITNESS OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

UN LIBRO DI MUSTAFA BARZANI , CAPO DELLA REGIONE AUTONOMA DEL KURDISTAN IRAKENO, CHE TESTIMONIA DEL GENOCIDIO ARMENO.....

OUTSANDING KURDISH POLITICIAN BEARING WITNESS OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Head of the Kurish autonomy of Nosthern Iraq, leader of the "Democratic Party of Kurdistan" Masoud Barzani recently published a work dedicated to the life and activity of his father, Mustafa Barzani. Mustafa Barzani’s memoirs about the Armenian Genocide and mass deportation of Armenians are also included in the work. It is also noteworthy, that the author’s grand-grandfather, Sheikh Mohammad Barzani was the religious leader of the Barzani tribe. Sheikh Mohammad’s son Abdulsalam later obtained both the political and religious leadership of the tribe. In 1914 Sheikh Abdulsalam was executed by the Ottoman authorities. After those events his sons divided the political and religious authority of the tribe.

At this very moment were started the mass repressions of Western Armenians. Abdulsalam’s son Sheikh Ahmad answered the summons of Armenian warlord Andranik, who was engaged in the organization of self-defense of Armenians. Molla Mustafa Barzani tells that he was among those 200 men sent by Sheikh Ahmad to aid Andranik’s forces. It should be noted that so as to avoid impact with governmental forces the brigade was to declare openly that their aim was to take part in the massacre of Armenians. Unfortunately, the Ottoman government had convinced the population of the empire that the 1915 events were a war of Muslims against the Christians, so that necessary lie was not hard to believe. "We aided the Armenians and accompanied the to the border of Syria", continues Molla Mustafa. "We were engaged by the Turkish forces and suffered casualties of 14 men".

On our part we should add that Molla Mustafa Barzani lived a long life and passed away in 1979, in the Souleymanie town of Northern Iraq. He was succeeded by his son Masud Barzani, who after his father’s example became had got involved in the Kurd national movement at the early age of 16.

All the information was taken from the Turkish www.kuvvaimilliye.net website.

By H. Chaqrian

V.V