Barazani, Talibani open two new offices

The two rival Kurdish groups who control northern Iraq, have strengthened their interests by opening, each of them, an office in the area where the other has control.

A statement by the Kurdistani Democratic Party led by Masoud Barazani said on Wednesday that the Kurdistani National Federation led by Jalal al-Talibani re-opened its office in Irbil, the headquarters of the Democratic party.

For its part, an official at the Democratic party said that his party will open on Saturday an office in al-Suleimaneyah, the headquarters of the National Federation.

These two measures fall in the framework of normalizing relations between the two organizations who have been controlling since 1991 the area of Kurdistan in the north of Iraq.

In October 2002, the Kurdish parliament ratified a peace agreement signed in Washington by Talibani and Barazani who has been in continued clashes.