SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — Kurds all over the Kurdistan Region celebrated Kurdistan Flag Day on Saturday, which takes place every year on December 17.
Having tweeted a video of the Kurdish flag flying, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani wrote, “The Kurds are alive and their flag will never fall.”
زیندووە قەت نانەوێ ئاڵاکەمان pic.twitter.com/bC5UZRpUCc
— Nechirvan Barzani (@IKRPresident) December 17, 2022
Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, celebrated the day in a televised message and hailed the Peshmerga forces and martyrs for their sacrifices for Kurdistan.
“We honor our flag, the flag that represents all the components of Kurdistan. We pay tribute to our honorable martyrs who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of this flag and our land,” said Barzani.
My message on Kurdistan Flag Day -mb. pic.twitter.com/1H2KjmWgLf
— Masrour Barzani (@masrourbarzani) December 17, 2022
Former Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani and the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) celebrated flag day saying, “Kurdistan flag is a shared value of the Kurdish people and a symbol of their sacrifice, aspirations and coexistence.”
The Kurdistan Region’s Education Minister, Alan Hama Saeed, celebrated the flag with Governor Omed Khoshnaw and students at Diyar basic school in the capital Erbil.
“This flag is a symbol of coexistence, resistance and self-determination of the Kurdish people and we should always be proud of it,” Saeed said in a speech.
On Kurdistan Flag Day, Culture Development Organization, a local NGO in Sulaimani, held an exhibition for some craftswomen to showcase their talents.
On #KurdistanFlagDay, Culture Development Organization, a local NGO in Sulaimani, held an exhibition for some craftswomen to showcase their talents
📸: Hamasur S. Fatah/ Zoom News pic.twitter.com/O06AYUBPQn
— Zoom News (@zoomnewskrd) December 17, 2022
The Kurdish flag first flew on official government buildings when Kurdish leader Qazi Muhammad declared the creation of the Republic of Mahabad in a Kurdish city by the same name in western Iran in 1946.
The Kurdish flag has become a symbol of resistance and nationalism despite the short life of the Republic. It is currently the official flag of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
In 2004, the Kurdish parliament marked December 17 as Kurdistan Flag Day, which is celebrated every year across the Region.
