New Escalation: KRI teachers, employees to strike over salary crisis

Shafaq News/ The Kurdistan Region (KRI) will see a "new escalation" on Sunday, with a general strike by teachers and employees aiming to pressure authorities to address their demands over delayed salaries, an official announced on Saturday.

“Starting Sunday, we will begin a full-scale strike and intensify our demand for our rights,” Dilshad Mirani, a member of the Coordination Committee for the protesting teachers and employees, wrote on Facebook.

Mirani explained that this step is part of "escalating peaceful protests to draw attention from the government and the international community to the suffering of those affected by the delayed salary crisis," as the Region endures a severe economic setback, with many teachers and employees yet to receive their salaries for December 2024 and January 2025.

Notably, the salary payment issue, tied to federal budget allocations and the KRI’s oil revenue contributions, has deeply impacted the Region’s people, sparking strikes and shutdowns in several areas such as Al-Sulaymaniyah, with schools, universities, and government offices disrupted. After halting oil exports through the Turkish Ceyhan pipeline, Baghdad began providing loans to cover salaries. In 2024, the Federal Supreme Court issued a binding decision mandating the direct disbursement of salaries to Kurdistan Region employees, bypassing Erbil. However, payments continued to face interruptions, with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) accusing Baghdad of irregular disbursements.