The Kurdish Kingmaker: How Barzani Still Shapes Iraq's Destiny

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Masoud ,Barzani — ,the name that ,still defines Kurdish, politics. Even after stepping, down as President ,of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Barzani continues to shape Iraq’s, future through, quiet power, party influence, and regional alliances.  This documentary,-style video explores:  How Barzani rose, from guerrilla fighter to Kurdish ,kingmaker  His power struggle ,with Baghdad over oil and autonomy  The legacy of the 2017 ,Kurdish independence referendum  His continuing role in, Iraq’s 2025 elections  From the mountains o,f Kurdistan to the corridors of Baghdad, Barzani’s story is one of survival, strategy, and influence that never fades.

Transcript

00:00As Iraq moves toward its November 11th parliamentary election, one name continues to loom large

00:07despite being absent from the ballot – Masood Barzani.

00:13The aging Kurdish leader who once fought Saddam Hussein's forces from the rugged mountains

00:18of northern Iraq remains a defining force in Kurdish politics even without holding formal

00:24office. His party, the Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP, is rallying voters to secure

00:31a strong Kurdish showing, not merely for seats in parliament but for leverage in an increasingly

00:37tense relationship with Baghdad. The stakes are high – control over oil revenues, budget

00:43allocations and the very autonomy of Iraqi Kurdistan.

00:46Masood Barzani's story is intertwined with the modern history of Kurdish struggle. Born

00:52in 1946, he inherited the legacy of his father, Mullah Mustafa Barzani, the legendary Lion of

00:59Kurdistan, who founded the KDP and led several revolts against Baghdad. Masood grew up surrounded

01:05by the sounds of conflict in a teenage guerrilla before he was even old enough to vote. His

01:11political instincts forged in the mountains would later allow him to navigate decades of

01:17rebellion, betrayal, and shifting alliances. Even now, at nearly 80, he is still referred

01:24to as President in Kurdish media, a testament to his enduring influence.

01:30Barzani's early rise came during one of Iraq's most turbulent eras. After the 1991 Gulf War,

01:37Kurdish fighters, the Peshmerga, took advantage of the chaos to rise up against Saddam Hussein.

01:43Barzani's forces captured several northern cities, but victory was short-lived. The US-led coalition,

01:50unwilling to see Iraq fragment, allowed Saddam to strike back.

01:56Facing annihilation, Barzani was forced into negotiations with the same dictator who had

02:01once gassed the Kurds and filled mass graves with their dead. The establishment of a US and

02:06British no-fly zone over northern Iraq later granted the Kurds de facto autonomy, setting

02:13the stage for what would become the longest period of Kurdish self-rule in modern history. Yet

02:19even that success was marred by internecine war, as Barzani's KDP clashed violently with Jalal

02:26Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, or PUKE. The rivalry reached its peak in 1996 when Barzani

02:35invited Iraqi government tanks into Erbil to oust Talabani's forces, a move that stunned Washington

02:42and forced CIA officers stationed in the region to flee. But Barzani's pragmatism, often criticized as

02:51opportunism, kept him politically alive. When Saddam fell in the 2003 US-led invasion, Barzani

03:00re-emerged as a key broker in the formation of Iraq's new federal structure. The Kurdistan

03:07region flourished under his leadership, remaining comparatively peaceful even as sectarian violence

03:14engulfed Baghdad. Western investors poured into Erbil, transforming it into a hub for oil and

03:22construction. For many Kurds, Barzani became the symbol of stability, the man who had finally

03:29given their people a semi-autonomous homeland. But the triumph would not last. In 2017, emboldened

03:37by Kurdish contributions to the fight against the Islamic State, where Peshmerga forces had fought

03:44alongside Iraqi and Iranian-backed troops to liberate Mosul, Barzani took a gamble that would

03:51nearly undo everything he had built. He called a referendum on Kurdish independence, confident

03:58that global sympathy for the Kurds' sacrifices would translate into support. 90% of voters

04:05said yes. Yet, the Baghdad government declared the vote illegal and swiftly sent forces to reclaim

04:12Kirkuk, the oil-rich city Kurds had long claimed as their heartland. Within days, Kurdish troops

04:20withdrew and Barzani was left politically isolated. The referendum, meant to crown his legacy, instead

04:27forced him to step down as president of the Kurdistan regional government. In a televised

04:32address after the debacle, Barzani vowed that he would always remain a Peshmerga, a soldier

04:38for his people. But the sense of betrayal ran deep. Kurds remembered how Western powers had

04:44urged caution, only to watch silently as Baghdad reasserted control. It was a reminder of a recurring

04:51theme in Kurdish history, the sense of abandonment by allies. Masood's father, Mullah Mustafa, had

04:58suffered the same fate in 1975 when U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger brokered a deal between

05:06Iraq and Iran cutting off aid to Kurdish rebels. Mullah Mustafa, exiled and dying of cancer in America,

05:13lamented that trusting Washington had been his greatest mistake. His son, four decades later, relived

05:20that same disappointment on a global stage. The scars of that betrayal, however, did not end

05:26Barzani's political relevance. Though no longer president, he continued to pull the strings

05:32behind the scenes through the KDP, which remains the most powerful Kurdish party. In the 2021

05:41election, the KDP secured a dominant share of the Kurdish vote, partly through an alliance

05:47with influential Shiite cleric Moqtad al-Sadr. Now, as Iraq heads toward its 2025 election, Barzani

05:55is once again at the center of Kurdish politics. His party is urging Kurds to turn out in large numbers,

06:01to strengthen their hand in negotiations with Baghdad over oil revenue and budget shares,

06:08issues that have long defined the relationship between the two capitals. A strong KDP performance

06:16could give Barzani the leverage to resist Baghdad's attempts to centralize control over Kurdish oil

06:22exports. The tensions between Erbil and Baghdad have escalated sharply in recent years.

06:27In 2022, Iraq's federal court declared the Kurdish regional oil and gas law unconstitutional,

06:35ordering Erbil to hand over control of its energy exports. Barzani denounced the decision as a political

06:43move designed to weaken Kurdish autonomy. Since then, disputes over payments, production contracts,

06:49and international oil sales have become recurring flashpoints. With oil revenues forming the

06:56backbone of the Kurdish economy, any reduction in financial transfers from Baghdad threatens the

07:02region's stability. For Barzani, this election is not just about seats. It is about ensuring that

07:08Kurdistan retains its economic independence in the face of renewed centralization. Despite his age,

07:14Barzani remains an active figure in Kurdish politics and diplomacy. He continues to meet with foreign

07:21envoys and maintain influence over regional decision-making. Supporters see him as the

07:27embodiment of Kurdish endurance, a man who survived Saddam's massacres, Western indifference, and internal

07:35rivalries. Critics, however, argue that his dominance has stifled younger political voices and deepened

07:42divisions within the Kurdish movement. The rivalry between his KDP and the PUK remains unresolved,

07:49occasionally erupting into disputes over revenue sharing and administrative control.

07:55For many Kurds, unity remains an elusive dream, even as they face growing pressure from Baghdad and

08:02regional powers like Iran and Turkey. As the 11th of November election nears, Barzani's influence once

08:08again hovers over Iraq's fractured political landscape. For Baghdad, the challenge lies in

08:15balancing Kurdish demands without appearing to compromise national sovereignty. For Barzani, the

08:21task is to prove that despite past setbacks, the KDP can still deliver tangible gains for Kurdish

08:28self-rule. Whether he succeeds or not will shape the future of Kurdish politics and perhaps determine whether

08:37Iraq can maintain its fragile equilibrium between autonomy and unity. Masoud Barzani's long career, from

08:45mountain fighter to political power broker, stands as both a symbol of Kurdish resilience and a reminder of how the

08:51struggle for self-determination in Iraq is far from over.

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