Iraqi Kurdish force alleges murder plot targeted its leader

A security agency linked to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region claimed on August 27th that it had foiled an assassination plot against PUK leader Pavel Talabani, according to The New Arab via Reuters on August 28th. 

The PUK-controlled security force released a video that purportedly shows six guards confessing to having received orders to carry out the assassination. The announcement raises serious concerns about the state security services within the region and the ongoing tensions surrounding political repression by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). These tensions represent the most severe period of internal armed conflict between Kurdish factions in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003. 

The video broadcast showed fighters outlining plans to rent an apartment near the PUK leader’s HQ, with footage of snipers using silencers positioned close to a window overlooking his office. The guards in the video claim they were acting on orders from Lahur Talabani, a leading Kurdish politician and cousin of Pavel Talabani, as well as the head of the rival People’s Front party.

PUK-controlled forces arrested Lahur Talabani on August 22nd following a late-night raid on a hotel in Sulaimaniyah, a major city in eastern Kurdistan, which sparked four hours of clashes with his loyalists. Police and hospital sources reported that three PUK commandos and two of Talabani’s fighters were killed in the fighting.

Authorities stated that more than 160 of Talabani’s loyalists were detained along with him. Judicial officials said a court in Sulaimaniyah had issued an arrest warrant for Lahur Talabani on charges of attempted murder and destabilising the city’s security. Sources familiar with the case described the move as part of a wider power struggle over Sulaimaniyah, a key PUK stronghold. On August 12th, Kurdistan security forces in the city arrested the leader of the main regional opposition party, New Generation, on charges that are seen as arbitrary. 

Lahur Talabani’s office was not immediately available for comment, but a member of the People’s Front accused the PUK of exploiting judicial and security institutions to sideline its rivals. Amnesty International had also condemned the trial and extended detention of a Kurdish journalist as part of the broader crackdown on critics of the Kurdistan government. 

The Peshmerga, the KRG’s internal security force, is affiliated with the region’s two dominant parties, the PUK and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Following the October 20th parliamentary elections, the parties still remain deadlocked over the formation of a new government in Kurdistan, largely due to disputes over key leadership posts. 

The People’s Front was formed in 2024 after Lahur Talabani was ousted from the PUK in 2021 due to major fighting over the party’s leadership between him and Pavel, the son of the deceased founder.

The escalation has sparked concerns among regional officials and analysts that the violence could undermine the relative stability of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, which has until now remained largely shielded from the wider unrest gripping the country.

The New Arab via Reuters, Maghrebi.org