Mr. Barzani is married and has four children, three sons and one daughter. He is fluent in Kurdish, Persian and English in addition to understanding Arabic.

1969

Masrour Barzani, was born on March 2, 1969, in Dilman Village in the Balakayati region.

Early Life

1985

Masrour Barzani has an accomplished history with the Kurdish resistance movement, having joined the Peshmerga, which translates to “those who face death”, in 1985 at the age of 16. He was an active participant in the Battle of Khwakurk against Saddam Hussein’s army in 1988. He also participated in the 1991 uprising against Saddam after the first Gulf War.

1992

Despite his irregular childhood given the tumultuous nature of the Kurdish resistance, Barzani was able to complete his high school education in Iran. After seeing peace restored to the region in 1992, he went to London for a year-long course in English. Having successfully completed this, he then successfully received his bachelor's degree with honors in International Studies from the American University in Washington, D.C. He continued studying Peace and Conflict Resolutions for his post graduate studies.

During his time in Washington, Barzani was actively involved in improving understanding of the Kurdish plight in America. He also established a Barzani Scholar-in-Residence program at American University in order to continue these efforts into the future

Political Career

1998

In 1998, he returned to Kurdistan Region and was elected by the KDP's 12th Congress to the Central Committee.

Later that same year he became part of the Kurdistan Democratic Party Leadership before being appointed as General Director of the Protection and Intelligence Agency.

2010

In 2010, he received the highest votes of the 13th Congress, was re-elected to the Leadership Council and then selected as one of the Politburo members of the KDP.

2012

In 2012, he was appointed by the Kurdistan Region President at the time Masoud Barzani as Chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council to oversee security, military intelligence and existing intelligence services.

2014

His elevation to Prime Minister comes after a lengthy and successful tenure as Chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council in Iraqi Kurdistan.

In this role, Barzani spearheaded efforts to protect Iraqi Kurdistan, the wider region, and beyond from the threat of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group.

Mr. Barzani has emerged as a key global figure in the fight against ISIS, earning widespread international recognition for his role in defeating a menace that destabilized regional states and perpetrated genocide against minority groups.

2019

Since June 2019, he has held the position of the prime minister in the Kurdistan Region, an autonomous region within Iraq. Additionally, he serves as the chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council and is a member in the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Following a strong parliamentary endorsement, he assumed office as prime minister of the KRG's ninth cabinet on June 10, 2019, with an overwhelming majority vote of 87 out of 97 legislators in the Kurdistan parliament.

Since 2019, Barzani has undertaken an intensive effort for reform and economic rejuvenation. Despite facing obstacles such as the novel Covid-19 pandemic and terrorist threats.

Prime Minister Barzani has successfully tapped into the potential in sectors beyond energy. Notably, he has spearheaded the first agricultural goods export initiative from the KRI.

Additionally, he has prioritized the modernization of government processes, placing a strong emphasis on digitalization throughout his tenure.

2022

Barzani was elected as the Vice President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party at the party’s 14th Congress held in 2022. Following a strong parliamentary endorsement, he assumed office as prime minister of the KRG's ninth cabinet on June 10, 2019, with an overwhelming majority vote of 87 out of 97 legislators in the Kurdistan parliament.

Personal Life