The May 17 publication of four photos of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani created an atmosphere of joy and celebration among supporters of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), especially in the Talabani stronghold of Sulaymaniyah. The images are the first to be released in the five months since Talabani's transfer to Germany on Dec. 20, 2012, for medical treatment following a stroke.

Amid the positive outpouring of emotion, the photos' release raised questions among observers about their timing and about statements made by Kirkuk Governor Najmaldin Karim, who is also Talabani's doctor, and the German physicians treating the president.

As the photos of Talabani at a Berlin clinic were being broadcast via PUK-affiliated satellite channels, including KurdSat and Gali Kurdistan, residents of Sulaymaniyah and Kurdish towns hoisted photos of Talabani and PUK flags, fired guns into the air and gathered in front of PUK offices. Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Regional Government and leader of the Democratic Party of Kurdistan, expressed his joy at the publication of the photos, posting on Facebook, "I am very pleased with the news of the improving health of Mam Jalal, the president of the Republic of Iraq. I ask God Almighty to completely cure the president, and hope that he can return to us in full health as soon as possible." Talabani has been undergoing treatment for over three months.

In the photos, Talabani is sitting in the garden of the clinic surrounded by his medical team and advisers. A short video was also broadcast featuring Dr. Karim and Talabani's German doctors, with Karim asserting that the president is in good health compared with five months ago and continues to improve day by day. The president does not appear in the video. Karim, a member of the PUK politbureau, is the only official authorized to make statement's about Talabani's health.