Fuad Hussein’s interview on Fox News
BRET: Welcome Dr. Fuad Hussein, chief of staff to the president Kurdish region, the chief of staff to the Kurdish president Masoud Barzani, Dr. Hussein thank you for being here.
Dr. Fuad: Thank you for having me.
BRET: First of all I want to start with the latest news from the front lines, a battle with the ISIS in or near the town of Rabea. What can you tell us about that? Early this morning.
Dr. Fuad: Yes, Rabea is a small town on the border of Syria. It has been liberated by Peshmerga forces, our forces, our Kurdish forces almost a month ago, but this morning in the early morning the terrorist forces tried once again to regain Rabea. They attacked with using heavy weapons and Humvees this town and our peshmerga forces there, after heavy fighting it was possible for our Peshmerga forces to beat the terrorists and eighteen of them has been killed thirty six or thirty eight of them I mean has been participated in the fight and their forces have been destroyed
BRET: Casualties of Peshmerga.
Dr. Fuad: We have got 10 casualties.
Bret: Fatalities
Dr. Fuad: Yes
BRET: It has been tough, this battle. What is the thing we don’t know sitting in the US from push back it on the ground.
Dr. Fuad: This is a tough fight they attacked Kurdish area beginning of August this year but after two three weeks it was possible for our Peshmerga forces to take their initiative and regain almost all Kurdish area except Sinjar which is on the border of Syria. This is, we are talking about force which has to do with area of 2000 square kilometer and we are talking about controlling a population which is about ten million people, it is a big force it is an international force it is well-trained, they have got heavy weapons well-financed and well-disciplined so we are talking about the state of terror
BRET: We hear different numbers of ISIS terrorists, the number of their forces – are we underestimating that?
Dr Fuad: Yes, I think their number which has been mentioned talking about 20000 or 30000 is not right number because when we talk about a large area which ISIS control which is one third of Iraqi territory and one third of Syrian territory, and we are talking about more than ten cities, big and small, so that means controlling these cities need security, but at the same time they are fighting in the same day in four, five, six frontlines, so, that means they have got big forces but also they running their state, and running their state means they have got department of health, department of education, department of religious affairs, department of war, legal department, so those people who are doctors or engineers, one day they are engineers or one day are doctors but the other day they are ready to be their fighters because they believe in their fight and they are terrorists.
BRET: So, the figures from your government on the issue, they talked about imbalance of weapons, of the Peshmerga verses ISIS, has the US provided the Kurds heavy weapons you need to correct this imbalance?
Dr. Fuad: Not yet, not yet. The US government supported us in the first place with air strike and air strikes were effective and are effective but at the end we are talking about ground forces, ground forces you need man power and also fire power, as for man power we have Peshmerga forces and to be honest unfortunately we are alone, there are many talks about other forces such as Sunny forces or Iraqi army forces, ok we hope one day they will be with us and fighting, but they are not yet there, they are not yet ready, and as for the fire power we have got light weapons and we receive some ammunition and some weapon equipment from western countries including the United States but we are talking about a long fight we are talking about liberating all these cities we are talking about heavy fight, and we also when compare our weapons that we have and the weapons that they have, the enemy the terrorists, then it is incomparable so, that means we need different kind of weapons, we need more weapons because this fight will be a long fight.
BRET: The last time I talked to deputy prime minister, said one of the issues was that everything should go through Baghdad and the US still going through Baghdad and has not provided anything directly besides AF47 to you the Kurds, is that still true?
Dr. Fuad: It is still going through Baghdad, that is right, that is right, one of the reason why we are here to talk about this, I mean if it goes through Baghdad they must convince Baghdad and also we will have this discussion with Baghdad that the weapon which comes to Kurdistan must be sent as soon as possible from Baghdad to Kurdistan but sending weapons through Baghdad that means delay, that costs money that costs time while daily we are in fight with terrorist, so it will be better actually to send weapons directly to Iraqi Kurdistan and inform Iraqi government about that.
BRET: Inter alia we’ve received, is that the responses been, doing what we been doing, going through Baghdad, so far no new heavy weapons no armed vehicles, no helicopters, you only have two helicopters on loan from Baghdad to patrol entire 650 mile border with ISIS.
Dr. Fuad: Now it is one helicopter.
BRET: one, because
Dr. Fuad: Because one of them has been hit.
BRET: So, that all true?
Dr. Fuad: So, we have got one helicopter and…
BRET: No heavy weapons?
Dr. Fuad: No, no heavy weapons - that is one of the reasons why we are here. We are raising this question. The United States has said and announced, even the president of the United States announced that the target is to weaken and destroy ISIS, and then the main question is, how are you going to do that? Who is going to do that? When are you going to do that? If it is about how are you going to do that, on the ground they only forces now until now, we hope that we will have Iraqi army in the future, we hope that Sunny tribes join us in this fight, but now we are alone, so the only mean who fight ISIS are the Kurdish fighters, and fight ISIS with light weapons, you cannot reach the target. If American government wants to reach the target then … we need support and help from the United States, this is a terrorist organization, this is an international organization. It is threat for us it is threat for a region but at the end it is threat to the western society.
BRET: With respect, I have had this conversation now with multiple members of your government saying this exact same thing about the US government that has pledged to go after ISIS and degrade it and destroy it, our president has said that, but yet they have given you no heavy weapons, no armed vehicles, and no helicopters to fight the fight of Peshmerga who are fighting on the ground, true?
Dr. Fuad: That is true, but we are asking that, we are asking American administration, American government help us and support us otherwise part we can defend or area but we cannot help liberate other area and to have ISIS a neighboring state, it will be dangerous for us, but also for Baghdad, but also for the region, so that means all our targets which we have put it in a framework, this is our target and we reach this target soon that will be far away from reality.
BRET: When you get together, and you talk about the US and what is not happening, why, do you think, it is not happening?
Dr. Fuad: this is, of course, this question must be ask the US government, but we thing that it has to do with the policy which says that everything must go through Baghdad, Ok, let us have it through Baghdad, but Baghdad must have a functional government, that is one. Second, even if it goes through Baghdad, let us make it clear, I mean clear percentage of the weapons must go to Kurdistan, let’s help each other, this is not our fight only it is also your fight if you want to be together and we have a common target we need your support we need your help, that is what we are telling.
BRET: The bottom line is that Baghdad has some questions about providing the Kurds weapons, why, because the sovereignty efforts that the Kurds would make eventually in the future?
Dr. Fuad: In Baghdad, some of them in Baghdad raise such kind of issues, the reality is we are also in Baghdad, so without our support to Baghdad, Baghdad cannot be the capital of the country, so we hope that we will have a functional government, we hope that we can help the political process in Baghdad, but at the same time we are engaged in a daily fight against terrorists, we are talking about being there or not, we are talking about that terrorists want to destroy our country our life, the terrorists want to occupy our area, the terrorists want to occupy the oil fields in our area and at the end they will be a threat for everybody, so what we are asking is to work together, work together with Baghdad, but also with the United States so that we can defeat the terrorists, otherwise they will attack us and they will attack Baghdad and then we will lose, all of us, we will lose the battle.
BRET: Do you think the US need to put troops on the ground?
Dr. Fuad: I am not the one who to advice the US government about that but a fight against the ISIS, it will be a long fight, fight against ISIS has to do with wide area and big area so you need a lot of forces on the ground as far as our area we can do it but with the equipment that we have we cannot reach the target as for other areas in Iraq and Syria, I am afraid we need other kinds of military units, the current military units which are exist in Iraq or not exist in fact is difficult to be a part of that process to defeat ISIS, if you give time to reestablish or to rebuild Iraqi army that needs perhaps two years three years from now on and if you want to establish local army in Sunny areas that needs also long time perhaps one year or two years and while ISIS is there they are controlling every day in your village and they controlling every day in you city not only in Iraq but also in Syria so the fight needs different kinds of weapons the fight needs different kinds of fighters but we are part of that fight against ISIS>
BRET: How long do you thing it last?
Dr. Fuad: I think it will be a long fight, I don’t know but here if you ask somebody from the state department, they are talking about three years. If you listen to the secretary of states, he is talking about thirty years, but anyhow it will be a fight for many years and this needs really cooperation and working together so that we can defeat the enemy.
BRET: We wish you well. Dr. Fuad Hussein, chief of staff to Kurdish president Barzani, thank you very much.
Dr. Fuad: Thanks a lot, thank you.
