Kurdistan president: Kurds have the power and authority to determine their own destiny

President of Iraqi Kurdistan Massoud Barzani said the Kurdish people have the power and authority to decide their own fate, stressing that the Kurdish leadership will not support any status that does not guarantee a clear future, Anadolu news agency reported.

Barzani’s remarks came during a joint press conference with the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, after their meeting in Erbil on Thursday.

Barzani said he discussed with the UN chief the aid provided to the Iraqi and Syrian refugees in the Kurdish region, stressing that the political parties in Iraq should use the UN chief’s visit to develop a roadmap to solve the country’s problems in the shortest possible time.

Meanwhile, the news agency quoted Ki-moon as saying that: “[The UN is] deeply concerned about the deteriorating security situation in Iraq. Violence in the country has forced nearly a million people to flee their homes, and the UN is following with great concern the current situation.”

He stressed that Iraq is currently facing great challenges, adding that all political parties in Iraq should solve the security problems as dozens of innocents are being killed on a daily basis, including women and children.

Commenting on the minorities in Iraq and the threats posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the UN official said, “We are very worried about them, especially the minorities in Mosul who are exposed to a significant risk to their lives.”

He described the ISIS threats against Christians in Mosul, ordering them to either convert to Islam, pay taxes or face death, as “extremely disturbing”.

Ki-moon concluded by congratulating Fuad Masum, who was elected by the Iraqi parliament on Thursday as the country’s next president, succeeding President Jalal Talabani.