Mostafa al-Kazemi recalls Iraq’s efforts to combat ISIL terrorism

The Prime Minister of Iraq, Mostafa al Kazemi, has valued this Friday the “enormous sacrifices” carried out in the fight against terrorism by the Iraqi people, in his speech at the United Nations Assembly.

“That task was arduous. Our people made enormous sacrifices, not only to liberate their land from the terrorist gangs of ISIL — the militia linked to Al Qaeda — but also to prevent them from threatening people everywhere,” he explained, while assuring that they managed to uproot this “destructive ideology.”

Al Kazemi has outlined the comprehensive plan that his government has developed for the reconstruction of the areas that had been under ISIL control to allow the return of the displaced people.

The prime minister has expressed his gratitude to the countries that have contributed to this goal by sending humanitarian aid and reminded that any assistance that the UN can provide will help these people to regain their normal life.

He has also called for strengthening cooperation ties and “ensuring respect for the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity”, after reiterating the request that Iraqi territories should not be used to “fight terrorism or protect the national security of other countries” in a way that puts Iraq at risk.

The president referred to the political impasse that the country is going through and the dialogue between all the political forces that his government has encouraged. He also stressed the effort made by the country to “protect democratic processes” and “the demands of the people to freely exercise their rights”.

“Iraq wishes to be a source of stability, both regionally and internationally (…) and repair the ties between the countries of the region, which have suffered from wars and crises for a long time. The time has come to rebuild the region on the basis of the balanced policy pursued by this government”, he said.