Najaf Friday prayer leader warns against the raising of the flag of Kurdistan in Kirkuk

Rasa – Hujjat al-Islam al-Qubanchi said that any escalation of the conflicts in Iraqi Kurdistan would be to the detriment of all parties involved.

News ID: 428726

Date: 08 April 2017 - 12:27

RNA – In his Friday prayer sermon delivered to a large and fervent crowd of believers in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf’s al-Fatimiyah al-Kubra Husayniyah, Hujjat al-Islam Sayyid Sadruddin al-Qubanchi responded to the raising of the flag of Kurdistan in Kirkuk said, “Such measure aims at hampering the path toward the liberation of occupied territory from Daesh Takfiri terrorists.”

Earlier this week, the semi-autonomous Kirkuk Provincial Council (KPC) voted in favour of raising the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) flag alongside the Iraqi national flag on public buildings in the city.

The Iraqi scholar called on the KPC to reconsider such conduct and said, “Any conflicts and internal disagreements will be to the detriment of all parties and for this reason, they must well thought-out.”

Hujjat al-Islam al- Qubanchi stressed that any disputes must be resolved through dialogue and respect to the Iraqi constitution.

He referred to the June 2014 fatwa issued by Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani in which the revered source of emulation called on all able-bodied Iraqi citizens to defend the country, its people, the honour of its citizens, and its sacred sites and said, “The fight against Daesh will continue until the complete liberation of the territory of this country is achieved.”

His Eminence condemned Wednesday’s bombing and suicide attack in the city of Tikrit and said, “After successive failures on the battlefield, Daesh has resorted to suicide attacks and bombings in various areas. We offer our condolences to the families of the martyrs of this terrorist attack and pray for the swift recovery of the wounded.”

At least 31 people were killed, including 14 police officers, and more than 40 wounded in attacks overnight by Daesh terrorists in the northern Iraqi city.

Referring to the anniversary of the martyrdom of Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Baqir al-Sadr, who was killed on April 9, 1980 by the forces of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Husayn, he said, “The martyrdom of Ayatollah al-Sadr and the execution of his sister, Bint al-Huda, was a rare and unforgettable crime carried out by Saddam.”

Hujjat al-Islam al-Qubanchi said that Ayatollah al-Sadr and Ayatollah Sayyid Muhammad-Baqir al-Hakim are considered as having many rights among the Iraqi people, “Saddam was extremely afraid of intellectual thought of Ayatollah al-Sadr and his revival of the Islamic school of thought through the path of philosophy and economics.”

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