Mam Jalal... An Incomparable Leader

Saadi Ahmed Pire

Written by PUK Politburo Member Saadi Ahmed Pire.

A calm reading of political history shows that charismatic leaders are shaped through long struggles. Becoming a successful and charismatic figure requires experience, hard work and years of tireless effort.

Alongside these qualities, Mam Jalal possessed remarkable leadership characteristics from an early age. When he was just 10 years old, his classmates elected him as their leader and representative at school. In his memoir "Meeting of a Lifetime", he recalls an incident in which he represented his fellow students in a discussion with the school principal over the conduct of a teacher, defending his classmates like a lawyer.

Mam Jalal was only 16 when he was elected to lead a major Kurdish political organisation. In his early youth, he became secretary-general of the Kurdistan Students Union and participated in international festivals and events as a representative of the Kurdish people.

During his university years, he established relationships with prominent political figures in Baghdad and worked within the country’s political circles to advance the legitimate rights of his people.

With the first wave of the September National Revolution, he once again took up arms, emerging as a courageous and capable military leader. He played a significant role in the Peshmerga’s epics during to struggle against the regime forces, where he distinguished himself as a brave commander and managed to become a capable and accomplished commander within the Kurdistan Peshmerga forces.

On the diplomatic front, Mam Jalal emerged as a prominent figure in Iraqi, Arab and international political circles. At the direction of President Mustafa Barzani, he served as a member of the Kurdish negotiating delegation to negotiate with the Ba’athist regime in Baghdad. He later participated as the Kurdish representative in a high-level Iraqi diplomatic delegation that visited Egypt and Algeria.

During the visit, he attracted the attention of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who described Mam Jalal as a capable Kurdish leader with a promising future. He later met Algerian revolutionary President Ahmed Ben Bella, securing his recognition of and support for the Kurdish cause and efforts to resolve the Kurdish issue.

Mam Jalal was not a political leader confined to a particular geographical boundary; he was a prominent and respected statesman recognised on the international stage. It was therefore no surprise that he was unanimously elected Vice-President of the Socialist International, further cementing his place among the world’s leading political figures.

After the collapse of the September Revolution, Mam Jalal raised the banner of resistance once again, overcoming the setback of the revolution by establishing the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and declaring a new phase of the Kurdish revolution. In doing so, he thwarted the plans and policies of the Ba’athist regime and shocked its leadership.

The regime’s president had previously claimed that “if a tree grew on him, Jalal Talabani could not gather ten people to revolt against us.” Yet Mam Jalal went on to mobilise a Peshmerga force of 100,000 fighters and, with the support of allied countries, became a leading force within the Iraqi opposition. Ultimately, the opposition succeeded in overthrowing Saddam Hussein’s regime, bringing an end to his rule and consigning him to history for his crimes against the Iraqi and Kurdish peoples.

It was Mam Jalal’s political wisdom that helped protect Iraq from descending into the abyss of sectarian conflict. Leaders of Iraq’s opposition parties would gather around his dinner table, where he sought to ease tensions, foster understanding and build consensus. On many occasions, a simple invitation to dinner was enough to bring political rivals together and open the way for dialogue and reconciliation.

For this reason, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s leading Shiite religious authority, described Mam Jalal as the “security valve” of Iraq. The description reflected the role Mam Jalal played in containing political tensions and preserving balance among the country’s competing forces.

Following Mam Jalal’s passing, Iraq has continued to face political disputes, sectarian tensions, corruption and rivalry among political forces, underscoring the significance of the approach he advocated.

Mam Jalal’s political vision and understanding of international affairs also enabled him to anticipate the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Before many other politicians and political analysts, he warned the United States and European countries that Saddam Hussein was preparing to invade Kuwait.

He also anticipated that the international allies would defeat Saddam’s forces. Months before the outbreak of the Gulf War, he helped prepare for the Kurdish uprising, which led to the liberation of Kurdish cities and areas and became one of the most significant achievements in the modern Kurdish struggle.

Whatever is written about Mam Jalal’s charisma and leadership cannot fully capture the breadth of his legacy. He was not only a prominent Kurdish leader and statesman who played a significant role in Iraq’s modern history, but also a figure whose political thought and legacy extended far beyond the region.

His memory and ideas will remain alive in the collective consciousness of the Kurdish people.