AM:11:54:30/07/2025
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Today, July 30, 2025, marks the 42nd anniversary of the Anfal campaign against the Barzan region, one of the darkest chapters in Kurdish history. On this day in 1983, the Ba’ath regime began arresting over 8,000 civilians from the Barzan areas of Harir, Qushtapa, and Diyana, deporting them to southern Iraq, where they were ultimately executed and buried in mass graves.
The victims were primarily members of the Barozi, Nzari, Mazuri, Sherwani, Dolamari, Gardi, and Harki tribes. The regime’s aim was to erase Kurdish nationalism and subdue the Barzani community. More than 7,300 of the victims are buried in the Barzan genocide cemetery.
The Anfal campaign, which formally began in 1983, later expanded into a broader operation of ethnic cleansing that claimed the lives of over 182,000 Kurds and led to the destruction of 4,500 villages. Ba’athist leaders later confessed to the crimes in court, leaving behind undeniable evidence of genocide.
Efforts to recover and honor the victims continue. So far, three phases of exhumation have taken place—503 bodies were returned in 2005, 93 in 2014, and 100 in 2022—yet thousands remain missing.