TEHRAN - A Qatari newspaper has reported that the Iraqi government is moving to revoke passports issued by the Iraqi Kurdistan’s regional governing body to anti-Iranian separatist elements.

Recent reports indicated that the Iraqi government had already revoked the passports of several leaders of the terrorist group known as the "Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan" (PDKI). 

On Saturday, the Qatari newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported that the Iraqi Ministry of Interior has ordered the revocation of the passport of Mostafa Mohammad Hijri, the group's leader, without providing specific reasons for this decision.

Al-Araby Al-Jadeed noted that this decision aligns with an agreement between Iraq and Iran to remove separatist elements from the border area between the two countries. It appears to be one of the outcomes of this agreement, aimed at revoking the passports of anti-Iranian separatist elements.

The Qatari media outlet further reported that Iraq, in coordination with the Iraqi Kurdistan’s regional governing body in northern Iraq, has intensified its measures to restrict the activities of these separatist elements against Iran. As part of these efforts, Iraq has begun revoking their passports.

According to information obtained by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Iraqi authorities have revoked not only Hijri’s passport but also those of other anti-Iranian separatist elements. These passports were allegedly obtained illegally through the Kurdistan Region's passport office, facilitating easy travel for these individuals.

The report also mentioned that Jasim Mohammad Jaafar, a former Iraqi minister, had criticized the Iraqi Kurdistan’s regional governing body in February for granting citizenship and Iraqi passports to anti-Iranian separatist elements, stating that this action violates the Iraqi constitution. He emphasized that the Iraqi Kurdistan region has become a haven for terrorist elements and separatist groups against neighboring countries.

Earlier this year, news sources announced that the Iraqi government had revoked the passports of several leaders of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan. Following the revocation of Mostafa Hijri's passport, the Iraqi government also revoked the passports of several other leaders of this group.

Under the security agreement between Iran and Iraq, the activities of terrorist groups opposing the Islamic Republic of Iran in northern Iraq are to be monitored, and the leaders of these activities are to be expelled from these areas.