Concerning the recent armed attack against its offices in the city of Najaf, the Political Bureau of the Iraqi Communist Party has issued the following statement:
This morning (Friday, 5th February), the office of our Iraqi Communist Party in the city of Najaf was subjected to a treacherous and cowardly armed attack, which caused a fire and material damage, without causing any casualties.
This morning (Friday, 5th February), the office of our Iraqi Communist Party in the city of Najaf was subjected to a treacherous and cowardly armed attack, which caused a fire and material damage, without causing any casualties.
The party’s offices in Baghdad, Basra, Diwaniyah and Nasiriyah had previously been subjected to similar criminal attacks. The instigators are apparently provoked by the political role of our party, its full support for the masses and the popular Uprising, the goals of the protesters, their aspiration for change and putting an end to the quota system and corruption. The attacks revealed the frustration of these forces with the active participation of Iraqi communists in the Uprising and the party’s martyrs who lost their lives while confronting the violence and oppression faced by protesters. The attacks also reflect the renewed attempts by these forces to perpetuate the climate of instability, tension and turmoil in the country.
However, these cowardly acts did not, and will not, undermine the will of the Communists, which has been repeatedly tested during the party’s 86 years. The perpetrators and those supporting them, internally and externally, have reaped nothing but shame, disgrace and the curse of history.
The new cowardly attack comes on the eve of the preparations for the parliamentary elections, which should be free and fair, and take place in a safe and peaceful environment, away from the threat of arms, pressure, coercion, corruption and the buying of votes.
Such miserable acts will only make the Iraqi communists in Najaf and in the rest of the country’s provinces more determined to continue the struggle, along with the masses of Iraqi people, to save the homeland and to move relentlessly forward towards building a state based on citizenship, true democracy and social justice.
While condemning this heinous criminal act and declaring solidarity with our comrades and the party supporters in Najaf, we call on the local and federal authorities to act speedily to apprehend the perpetrators and those behind them to ensure they receive the punishment they deserve.
