Nechirvan Barzani: Peshmerga Have a Glorious History Built by Generations of Fighters

ARK News.. Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani said on Monday, September 21, 2026, that the reform process within the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs was initiated by President Masoud Barzani, describing the unification of the Peshmerga Forces as an important national step in building the institutions of the Kurdistan Region.

Speaking at a ceremony marking the integration of the Peshmerga Forces, Nechirvan Barzani said the current efforts date back to 2016, when President Masoud Barzani launched the reform process within the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs.

He said this came at a time when, under President Masoud Barzani’s leadership, the Peshmerga Forces had shattered the myth of ISIS.

Nechirvan Barzani also recalled that in 2014, on the orders of President Masoud Barzani, Peshmerga forces went to Kobani to defend the city, marking what he described as a bright chapter in the history of defending the people of Kurdistan.

“Therefore, this occasion is the event that the people of Kurdistan have waited for for many years, and one for which we have all worked over the years,” he said.

The Kurdistan Region president stressed that the process was not merely a change in structure and organization or the transfer of units from one formation to another, but rather a major national step in the process of building the institutions of the Kurdistan Region.

“In previous years, we said that Kurdistan needs one force, one ministry, and one commander. The Peshmerga must be a national force, free from partisan interference and conflicts, and today we are taking another major step toward achieving this goal,” he said.

Nechirvan Barzani noted that whenever Kurdistan faced danger, there was no distinction between one Peshmerga fighter and another or between one area and another. During the most difficult periods, he said, Peshmerga fighters stood together in the trenches and made sacrifices together, shedding their blood to protect one land and one people.

“The Peshmerga have a glorious history, and today we are bringing this history and those sacrifices together within a single national institution. It is a history created by successive generations of Peshmerga, and we will turn it into a unified force to protect Kurdistan,” Barzani said.

He concluded by stressing that the unification of the Peshmerga Forces was not the end of the process but rather the beginning of a new and potentially more challenging phase.

“From today onward, this unification must be reflected in everything: in leadership and administration, in decisions and orders, in training and organization, in rights and duties, as well as in promotions and military discipline,” he said.

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