Terror Attacks of  1st February  2004 in Kurdistan: Our 11th September

Dr. Nazhad Khasraw Hawramany

Feb 3, 2004

The two vicious suicide terrorist attacks in the KDP and PUK headquarters in Arbil on the 1st day of Eid-Aladhha religious holiday on the 1st of February 2004, have shaken the Kurdish establishment and the people of Kurdistan with disbelief and shock, at a time when they mistakenly thought that they were immune to the sort of terrorist suicide attacks which takes place almost on daily basis in different parts of Arab Iraq, at a time when Arab hate media like Arab satellite senders hail those murderers which perpetrate such barbaric acts in Israel as martyrs and heroes with 70 virgin angels waiting for them in heaven as soon as they commit their heinous homicide, the Kurds have thought that such a terrorist culture will not reach Kurdistan, just as the Americans thought that their land is invulnerable by ignoring the terrorist threats which has a very active breeding ground in the Middle East. 

The Kurdish officials who were to blame for the lax security and the issuing of orders explicitly to the guards not to search the guests must be brought into account and these fatal mistakes must be investigated and measures taken to prevent its recurrence, such a security blunder has cost the Kurdish nation the loss of many of its loyal and experienced political officials, who spent their entire life struggling for the just cause of our nation, gaining through it an immense wealth of political experience only to be killed so easily because of a security blunder and a naive wishful thinking. A few days before this tragic event I had a call from a friend who came back shortly from a visit to Kurdistan, he was alarmed about the lack of security measures in Arbil and the apparent indifference of the officials there about the deteriorating situation, at the time I must confess that I thought that he was exaggerating or misjudging the situation, but the shock of the suicide attacks on 1st of February 2004 reminded me stark about his judgment.

There is no doubt that these terrorist elements whether they are local terrorists, Arab Jihadis or terrorists from neigbouring countries have exploited the security gaps in Kurdistan to plan and execute their heinous crime against the people of Kurdistan, there is also no doubt that the efforts to reintegrate Kurdistan into Iraq, opens the gates for terrorists who operate almost freely in other parts of Iraq to gain new grounds for terror in Kurdistan, there is again no doubt that the hostile reactions of Arabs in Iraq as well as neighbouring countries and the lack of commitment by American officials towards the legitimate demands of Kurds   for a federal Kurdistan, as well as the campaign of hate and incitement by Arab and regional media, has encouraged local and foreign Islamic terrorists to consider the Kurds a target for their criminal acts, especially as the Kurds are seen as  secular forces and allies of Coalition in Iraq.

The Kurdish political parties as well as Kurdish intelligentsia must discuss measures to further unite the Kurdish people and push their demands for federalism even harder, they should discuss measures to study and tackle the problem of Islamic fanatics in Kurdistan, and steps must be taken to uproot this cancer from the soil of Kurdistan, the security system in Kurdistan must be updated and inefficient officials must be sacked and properly qualified and vigil  security officials appointed.

The Kurds in Kurdistan and Diaspora are mourning those faithful Kurds who perished in this cowardly act, but the most important thing is draw conclusions and take measures that such a crime does not happen again. We owe it to those martyrs that we continue our struggle for a free Kurdistan unabated by terror and we should resort even more to the people of Kurdistan, the real source of resolve and power in Kurdistan.