Ranj

Political hobbyist.

3+1+1=0.

[Wladimir van Wilgenburg @vvanwilgenburg]

#BREAKING: Local media site Kurdistan Today claims that @PDKIenglish leader Mustafa Hijri has departed for Washington, who according to The Wall Street Journal spoke earlier this week with U.S. President Donald Trump has been invited by the U.S. State Department for meetings with senior U.S. officials.

So far no confirmation from PDKI and U.S State Department

[Ranj @bdfne]

هههههههه، ئەگەر ئەمریکا لە چەپتە و ئێران لە راستە، چاوت‌ داخە و روو لە ئاسمان کە

[PUKMEDIA English @pukmedia]

Qubad Talabani attends prayers at the Great Mosque of Sulaymaniyah.

[Ranj @bdfne]

If a decision has been made to launch a border incursion into Iran, and ATM it seems like the worst kept secret on Earth, KDP and PUK have limited means of influencing it either which way. Paying lip service to Iran in hopes of directly avoiding the firestorm ahead seems sensible

[Ranj @bdfne]

Strong statements denying participation in this conflict by BOTH KDP and the PUK today should be looked at as creating plausible deniability, hoping to affect Iranian calculus in both the short and long term rather than a serious attempt to impede a border incursion into Iran.

[Ceng Sagnic @cngsgnc]

This looks like sensationalized lip service by the #PUK to the Islamic Republic, presumably after receiving some very serious threats.

[Ranj @bdfne]

"Columns of armoured vehicles clog the road to the snow-capped crossing of Haj Omran. Hundreds of Peshmerga have travelled in unmarked white buses and fanned out in villages adjoining the border. A hospital this correspondent visited on March 4th had been turned into a barracks"

[Barak Ravid @BarakRavid]

Update: There are conflicting reports regarding what is currently happening in northwestern Iran near the border with Iraq. It is unclear whether a ground offensive by the Iranian-Kurdish militias has already begun or may be launched in the coming hours. A senior official in one of the Iranian-Kurdish factions denied to me that a ground offensive has started

[Paraic O'Brien @paraicobrien]

Being widely reported that
Kurdish-Iranian militias have started a ground offensive in north-west Iran.
Our team here in Erbil has been in contact with 3 of the main groups - all denied involvement
Pjak says not us
KDPI tells us the same
Komala just denied it too
I’m confused.

[Ranj @bdfne]

This could all be an obfuscation tactic, but If they haven't launched an attack, very strange for multiple American and Israeli sources to be wrong

If they have, it could point to lack of coordination between Kurdish opposition groups

[Farzad Seifikaran @FSeifikaran]

I just spoke with Mr. Abdullah Mohtadi, the Secretary-General of the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan and he denied this report.

[Gareth Browne @BrowneGareth]

Having spoken to a few informed sources, thousands of Iranian-Kurds have been armed and funded by the CIA in recent months. Most of them are already in Iran, waiting for an order to move. A minority are in Iraqi Kurdistan, waiting to cross over into Iran.

[Joyce Karam @Joyce_Karam]

SCOOP: Iranian Kurds, in contact with CIA now in Iraq, are poised to cross to #Iran in next few days. Masoud Barzani no longer opposed. @amberinzaman reporting:
https://t.co/QW4sm7A7eZ

[Ranj @bdfne]

Oh oh, this has the potential to go very wrong.

I hope they've at least received more than verbal assurances before doing anything drastic

[The New Region @thenewregion]

A recently-formed alliance of Iranian Kurdish opposition parties on Monday called on Iran’s Kurds to protect administrative institutions “during the days of the regime’s collapse and public uprising” – Statement

The coalition also urged the Kurds to “keep their distance from the regime’s military and security bases and centers for their greater protection”

It further called on soldiers in western Iran (Rojhelat) to separate from the Iranian government and “choose the side of their own nation”

[Ranj @bdfne]

Even he's learning to ragebait on Twitter

[Zalmay Khalilzad @realZalmayMK]

With Nouri al-Maliki, Iraq will have a strong and experienced Prime Minister. Next up is the office of President, for which I believe Fuad Hussein, will be a great choice. He too is experienced and is widely respected both at home and abroad. Nouri al-Maliki and Fuad Hussein will be a great team for Iraq - wish I had a vote! #IRAQ #KURDISTAN #Saudi_Arabia #UAE #Qatar #Turkiye #Israel #Iran #Kuwait
#Oman #Yemen

[Fûrat shalbî @Furtalmedi10]

🔴 The Syrian Ministry of Endowments, affiliated with the Damascus government and Al-Qaeda-linked groups, is politicizing Surah Al-Anfal and weaponizing it to justify violence against Kurds in North and East Syria. This dangerous incitement echoes the Anfal genocide in Iraq and seeks to legitimize hatred and collective punishment under religious cover.
@EU_Commission @EmmanuelMacron @sanchezcastejon @CENTCOM @LindseyGrahamSC
#Kurds #NorthAndEastSyria #WarCrimes #GenocideIncitement #HumanRights #Anfal

[Ranj @bdfne]

But this is Iraq and nobody can truly guess what'll happen. Maybe Zaidan will have a change of heart over requirements for nominating a PM a week through the process, so any guesses about what comes next is tenuous at best

[Ranj @bdfne]

If 2021 wasn't a victory for Sadr with ~70 seats, 2025 isn't a victory for Sudani with ~50, portraying it as such is insanely misleading, esp. if you are trying to back up your point with meaningless raw vote count figures that hold little sway over how seats are distributed.

[Ranj @bdfne]

And in general, with how divided the Sunni, Kurdish, and Shiite political scenes are, if you sneeze, you could probably form a Suls al Mu3atal in parliament, so the odds of next gov't formation meaningfully excluding any relevant party is very slim.

[Wladimir van Wilgenburg @vvanwilgenburg]

Kurdish parties’ seat changes in the new Iraqi parliament (2025 vs. 2021) based on preliminary results:

[Wladimir van Wilgenburg @vvanwilgenburg]

Vote changes in Kurdistan Region (excluding disputed areas) 2024 - 2025

Data: Draw media

[Ranj @bdfne]

This game of cat and mouse between KDP and Babylon over the quota seats has become so comical that you can secure an actual seat with fewer votes in some Southern provinces.

[Kurdistan Watch @KurdistanWatch]

Update on the Christian quota seat in Duhok: the Babylon Movement candidate backed by the PUK has won the seat, defeating the KDP-backed candidate despite the KDP casting around 20,000 votes for him. The Babylon candidate received over 26,000 votes.