ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Kurdish president Masoud Barzani called on political factions in Kurdistan Region on Tuesday to come together and “find common grounds” on the much anticipated Kurdish referendum. “Hopefully after the Eid [Fitr] the parties and political groups in the Kurdistan Region will gather and find common ground on the referendum and the Region’s relation with Baghdad,” Barzani said in a statement on Tuesday marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. President Barzani also hopes the Kurdish factions will “find a solution for the political situation in the Region” which has been in a deadlock since November last year when relations between the ruling and opposition parties deteriorated over the constitution draft and the presidents terms in office. Aides close to Barzani have said the Kurdish referendum for independence will go ahead before the end of 2016 in spite of the ongoing impasse in the parliament, the endorsement of which is needed to legally hold a binding referendum. Over 98 percent of the people in Kurdistan Region voted for independence in January 2005 in a non-binding referendum, which demonstrated the strong Leave camp in the otherwise politically fragmented Kurdistan region. If held, the referendum will also include retaken areas, such as the volatile Kirkuk region, with mixed populations who will decide whether they want to become part of the Kurdistan Region and possibly a future Kurdish state too.
