KRG PM, deputy visit PUK leader in Germany

BERLIN, Germany – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and his deputy Qubad Talabani headed to Germany Saturday night to visit Kosrat Rasul where he has been receiving medical treatment since last month.

Rasul, acting head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), fell ill in early November. He underwent emergency surgery in Sulaimani for a stoppage of blood flow to his small intestine before being flown to Berlin on November 16 for further treatment.

PM Barzani said on his Instagram account that they visited the PUK leader in Germany following their meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris earlier in the day.

Ali Dolamari, the KRG representative to France, told Rudaw on Friday night that the Kurdish delegation did not have plans for similar meetings with other European leaders.

Rasul’s Kurdish medical team described his health as “excellent” on November 21.

"The results of all medical checkups are promising," said Dr. Dara Rasheed, the head of his medical team at the time.

He said that Rasul, 64, did not need any further treatment and they will head home once the "medical procedures" were over.

Rasul became the PUK's acting head after the death of the party's founder and leader Jalal Talabani in early October.