ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw said on Tuesday that authorities will not allow a scheduled Syrian products fair to take place in the Kurdish capital unless the Kurdistan flag is added to its promotional social media posts. The decision came after Syrian authorities included only the Iraqi and Syrian flags in an advertisement for the event.
The Syrian Exhibitions and International Markets Foundation (SEIFE) published a post and an image on its Facebook account on Tuesday, inviting people to participate in the "largest exhibition of Syrian products." The image featured Iraqi and Syrian flags as well as the Erbil citadel. It did not include the Kurdistan flag or the name of the Kurdistan Region.
Governor Khoshnaw and Mohammed Shukri, head of Kurdistan Region’s investment board, told Rudaw that they will not allow the Syrian foundation to hold the event unless they add the Kurdistan flag to the advertisement.
Soon after Rudaw’s Kurdish service published an article on the issue, the Syrian fair affairs body deleted the Facebook post. They have not provided any explanation for excluding the Kurdistan flag or for deleting the post.
Shukri told Rudaw that they have spoken with the relevant parties and informed them that if they did not change the image, they would not be allowed to hold the exhibition.
The event was scheduled to take place from January 23 to January 26.