Kurdistan

Erbil committee finds Kurdistan officials implicated in smuggling with ISIS

20/1/2015

A masked gunman guards an ISIS checkpoint in Iraq. AP file photo.

by Saeed Sahen Mufti

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A committee investigating Kurdish officials smuggling cars, food and fuel across territories held by the Islamic State (ISIS) said that the illegal trade amounted to $1 million a day.

According to a final report by the committee on the smuggling, a number of officials from the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Peshmerga have been involved in the illegal trade.

Firsat Sofi, a KDP member of the Kurdish parliament said the identities of people arrested for involvement in the smuggling had not been disclosed by the committee.

"We asked about the identity of those detainees. Some of them were tanker drivers, senior political members and merchants. Even if we knew the names we would not reveal them since that would be illegal, since the judiciary must deal with this issue and we will see the verdicts soon."

Fakhraddin Qadir, another Kurdish MP who is from the Kurdistan Islamic Group (Komal) said: "We believe that any kind of relationship with ISIS is treachery, and we will hold a meeting in the parliament concerning the smuggling cases if we are asked."

The investigative committee includes the KRG’s interior minister and natural resources minister.

KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani has warned that anyone caught smuggling with ISIS would be punished.

“Anyone caught smuggling with ISIS should be considered a traitor and the government must punish them,” he has said.

The autonomous Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq sits on a border with ISIS that is more than 1,000 kilometers long. The insurgent group blazed across Iraq’s mainly Sunni territories in June, capturing a third of the country.

According to US-based Foreign Policy magazine, ISIS has become the world’s richest terrorist group through oil smuggling, theft, human trafficking and hostage-taking.

Intelligence officials and private experts say the group has become a self sustaining financial force and is said to be earning more than $3 million from these activities.

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3 Angry Bird | 20/1/2015

Reading this I want to vomit. Hang these traitors after torturing them. These traitors God is Money and they are vile prostitutes to it.

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12 kurt basar | 20/1/2015

welcome to the Kurdarabistan, the place where the poor man dies for defending it, young girls get kidnapped, raped and sold because of their believes and being Kurd's. Two feudal lords ruling it from two different capitals same as their Fiefdom and not only that, they are horse trading with their enemy, can you imagine that? Because of that we don't have an independent Kurdistan, what we need is true leader not the tribal chief or feudal lord, god help the Kurd's otherwise they will continue go to the Mecca for to stoning themselves and they rightly deserve it. By the way Saudis already building high fence at their borders with the Iraq, for to Keep Sunni Iraqi's away from them because it will be three states in the Iraq, I wonder when will my Kurdish brothers are going to see the light?

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1 charlie mccabe | 20/1/2015

There is good news in this, it's no secrete that Iraq (and KRG), Assad in Syria, Turkey, and even Iran are all doing business with ISIS. Most of these countries will not stop trading with ISIS because of corruption, and let's face it, it's also in their short term economic benefit. That's why Kurds should be very proud today, kurdish media and officials blew the case open, that lead to the kurdish government setting up an investigation, which ultimately put a stop to it, this is how modern civilized societies operate.

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14 I$I$ = Cheap OIL | 20/1/2015

Thanks to Sheikh M'Barak Obama, America's secret ISIS supporter who helped close down Guantanamo Prison for Saudi Arabia as well as Sheikh Erdogan, and UK who have always loved taking in all ISIS terrorists coming from Syria and Iraq, ISIS have been well groomed and armed well before the attacks took place. It was all part of the plan. To rid Assad for sake of Turkey and US against Iran. Iran is so overwhelmed that Assad is still alive and well that their government is even offering an airlift to Assad and his family as guest to join them. So this war is not only between Sunni Islamist and Shiites, but also a war between US/Israel and Iran who is trying to heavily influence its presence in Iraq and Syria. Now as a result of all the Oil steeling and exporting through Turkey which were sold to US and The West, the price for oil is now a lot cheaper for everyone to enjoy at the cost of children's blood and women being brutally being raped and sold as sex slaves and men being being beheaded.....💀💀💣😢😂😭😪👹👺🙈🙉🙊💉💸💰💴💵💷💳🚬⛽️🚀✈️🚙🚘🚗🚕🚖🚛🚚

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0 MALCOLM | 21/1/2015

The smuggling clearly is despicable, but I believe the world will see this as more than outweighed by the integrity of the committee and Prime Minister Barzani. We have a saying in the UK that every family has a 'black sheep'. Your good family of Kurdish patriots know and will know how to deal with your black sheep in a just and proper manner. This affair is a paradigm of yours for the whole wider region to contemplate with approval.

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