Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani renewed his call on Sunday for the Iraqi federal legislative and executive authorities to expedite the process of officially recognizing Halabja as Iraq’s 19th governorate.
During a speech at the foundation stone-laying ceremony for a grain silo project in Halabja, Barzani highlighted that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) had decided ten years ago to transform Halabja into a governorate.
He stated, “Unfortunately, to this day, the procedures for establishing Halabja as a governorate by the Iraqi Parliament and the federal government have not been completed.”
Barzani emphasized the urgency of finalizing these procedures and called for Halabja to be officially recognized at the federal level, including the allocation of a development budget.
In June 2013, the KRG decided to establish Halabja as a governorate, headquartered in the city of Halabja and encompassing the districts of Halabja, Sharazoor, Penjwen, and Sayid Sadiq, previously under the al-Sulaymaniyah governorate.
On March 13, 2023, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani announced the Cabinet’s approval of a draft law to create the Halabja governorate and referred the proposal to parliament for enactment. However, the parliament failed to pass the law due to political disagreements.
