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Barzani cousins assume top posts in Iraqi Kurdistan

The new president and prime minister of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region have been sworn into office.
Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani speaks during a news conference after casting his vote, during parliamentary elections in the semi-autonomous region in Erbil, Iraq September 30, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RC1904E48690

SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq — Iraqi Kurdistan has a new president and prime minister this week as the Barzanis continue to keep it all in the family.

After serving as the Kurdistan Regional Government's prime minister, Nechirvan Barzani was sworn in June 10 as the second president of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region. He succeeds his uncle Masoud Barzani, who held the post for 12 years but stepped down in November 2017 after the region's independence referendum backfired, triggering a military offensive from Baghdad.

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