President Masoud Barzani release a statement and ask international community and Iraqi government to bring an end to the oppression of Kurdish community in kurdistan territories outside Kurdistan Regional adminstration and implement articl

Repeated fire incidents on the agricultural lands owned by Kurdish farmers in the disputed areas of Kirkuk are “grave crimes and deliberate cruelty”, said Masoud Barzani, a prominent Kurdish leader and the former president of Kurdistan Region.

Over the past month, dozens of Kurdish-owned wheat farms in Kirkuk, Diyala, and other disputed territories were set on fire. In some cases the Iraqi authorities blamed the Islamic State (IS), while others were carried out by Iraqi Arabs who stormed the Kurdish villages to forcefully occupy the Kurdish lands.

“What is happening in these areas is the violation of laws, the constitution, and the human values. It is also an alarming development that threatens the lives and future of the people there,” Barzani wrote in an official statement on Thursday.

“This oppression is a punishment for people based on their [Kurdish] national identity.”

Barzani called on the international community to intervene and help resolve the issue.

He also urged the Iraqi Federal Government to take the responsibility and immediate measures against those who are behind the oppressive plots against Kurds in the disputed Kurdish areas.