Iraq’s first lady urges international powers to 'leave the Kurds alone'

ISTANBUL

Iraq’s first lady Shanaz Ibrahim Ahmed, the wife of Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, called on international actors to “leave the Kurds alone,” saying it is “very difficult, indeed impossible” for Kurds to accept being treated as pawns by global powers.

In a statement released Thursday on the US social media company X’s platform, Ahmed said Kurds should not be used as proxy fighters in regional conflicts, adding: “We are not guns for hire.”

The statement came after media reports alleged that the US was considering arming Kurdish groups and sending them to fight against Iran.

Ahmed referred to historical experiences that have shaped Kurdish distrust of outside powers. She recalled that Kurds were encouraged to rise up against the regime of Saddam Hussein in 1991 but were later abandoned when international priorities shifted.

“No one came to our defense when the regime deployed helicopter gunships and tanks to crush the uprising,” she said, adding that memories of that period remain vivid. She noted that Kurds remember the lessons of the uprising.

Ahmed also pointed to more recent events in northeastern Syria.

“After all the promises that were made, after Syria’s Kurds stood on the front lines of the war against ISIS, we witnessed how they were treated,” she said.

Ahmed said that Iraqi Kurds today have achieved a degree of stability and dignity, making it unlikely they would accept being used by outside powers.

“The experiences are there. The empty promises are there,” she said. “Too often, the Kurds are remembered only when their strength or sacrifice is needed.”

Calling on all sides involved in regional conflicts, Ahmed added: “Leave the Kurds alone. We are not guns for hire.”