SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The trial of Kurdish opposition leader Lahur Sheikh Jangi and his co-defendants reached a critical stage on Thursday when the main accused and two close associates finally gave formal testimony in a Sulaimani court.

After more than a year in detention following a deadly armed confrontation at the Lalezar Hotel, Lahur, his brother Polad, and associate Rebwar Hameed Haji Ghali rejected accusations of attempting to assassinate Bafel Talabani, the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and his younger brother Qubad Talabani, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, and presented a markedly different version of events.

At a press conference after the hearing, Dana Taqiadin, spokesperson for Lahur’s defense team, said all the defendants dismissed the charges against them. He added they will be notified of the next court session’s date by next week.

The New Region’s correspondent was not allowed to attend Thursday’s trial, in violation of the Kurdistan Region’s Press Law and the Right to Access Information Law, both of which permit journalists to cover public events freely and guarantee access to information.

Taqiadin summarised the defendants’ testimony and criticized the court for barring the press from attending the trial.

According to the defense, Rebwar told the court that Lahur had ordered the armed men around him to protect the residence of the late Iraqi president and PUK co-founder Jalal Talabani, also known as Mam Jalal, citing fears of an internal coup among PUK military commanders.

“When Mr. Rebwar appeared before the judge, he stated: ‘Mr. Lahur told us that we must protect the house of Mam Jalal because there is a coup against Mam Jalal’s house, and Hero Khan is like a mother to us. We must prepare for this,’” Taqiadin told reporters.

Hero Ibrahim Ahmed (Hero Khan) is the widow of Jalal Talabani and the mother of Bafel and Qubad Talabani. Rebwar, according to the defense, explicitly denied receiving any order to attack party leaders or assassinate the Talabani brothers.

All military preparations, he said, were defensive measures to safeguard the Talabani family home, which Lahur regarded as a “red line” out of personal and political loyalty, according to Taqiadin.

Lahur rejected all charges attributed to him. According to his lawyers, he told the court that his only purpose in mobilizing armed personnel was to protect Hero Khan and the surrounding residential area during a period of acute political tension.

Taqiadin also quoted Lahur on the question of a possible political settlement. The opposition leader told the court he had refused an offer of a settlement and had insisted on appearing before the judges, adding that if he had wanted to kill Bafel Talabani, he could have done so, but he never had any such intention.

“I want the court to maintain its sovereignty; if I had accepted an offer to settle the issue outside the court, today I might not be seen here. Therefore, I came in front of the court so that the judiciary retains its sovereignty. I am not convinced that this judge or the court can resolve this case legally,” Taqiadin quoted Lahur as saying at the trial.

Taqiadin stressed that those were Lahur’s own words and that the legal team could not independently confirm whether a formal settlement proposal had been made by senior PUK officials.

The spokesperson also recounted Polad’s testimony, saying that he told the court that he does not speak Kurdish well and that his statements “were taken under heavy pressure and threats, and were taken when he was unconscious as he was receiving treatment from his injuries.”

“Polad also stated that he had requested a lawyer during interrogation, but his request was rejected,” the lawyer added.

The defense continues to challenge the prosecution’s evidence. Lawyers say they have requested hard drives and CCTV footage, but those requests have remained unanswered.

On claims that snipers were positioned near the residence of Talabani in Dabashan hill in Sulaimani, Taqiadin quoted Lahur as saying he was not aware of any sniper weapons preparations for the alleged assassination plot.

The defendants are accused under Article 406 of the Iraqi Penal Code, which concerns premeditated murder and carries the death penalty in aggravated cases, and Article 56, which addresses criminal conspiracy and provides for imprisonment of up to seven years if the planned offense is a felony.

The defense argues that Lahur, as a member of the Kurdistan Region Security Council, had a legitimate right to protect himself and that his actions were a response to an unlawful assault on his residence.

The case stems from a violent power struggle within the PUK, one of the two main ruling parties in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Lahur, a former co-leader of the PUK and cousin of the Talabani brothers, was ousted from the party leadership in 2021. He later founded the opposition People’s Front party.

In August 2025, PUK-affiliated security forces moved to arrest him at his residence in the Lalezar Hotel in Sulaimani.

The operation, which involved tanks and drones, triggered hours of intense fighting in a residential area of the city. According to official data, two of Lahur’s aides and three members of the PUK security forces were killed. Conflicting reports, however, say the death toll was higher.

Lahur, Polad, and dozens of associates were detained. Twenty-seven people arrested in connection with the clashes remain in custody.

Taqiadin told The New Region that although the trial is proceeding according to the law so far, if the court convicts the defendants, the defense team will appeal the decisions immediately.

Lahur remains in high-security detention while the judges reserve their decision.

The outcome of the case will depend on how the court weighs the recanted confessions, the unresolved requests for evidence and the intensely political atmosphere that has surrounded the case – and, ultimately, whether the Sulaimani-based court can make its decisions independently and free from political interference in the judiciary’s affairs.