The hearing of the case of Lahore Talabani and Polad has been postponed for another two weeks

According to Kurdistan Press, the hearing of the case of Lahore Talabani and Polad Talabani and a number of other defendants in the Lalehzar case was not held again in the Sulaymaniyah Criminal Court, and the hearing of the case has been postponed for another two weeks.

According to published information, a new date is set to be set on Sunday to receive the defendants' statements.The case dates back to the events of August 22, 2025, at the Lalehzar Hotel in Sulaymaniyah, when security forces entered his residence to arrest Lahore Talabani. After a few hours of fighting, Lahore Talabani, his brother Pulad, and a number of people with them were arrested. During the fighting, several security forces and people present at the scene were killed and injured.

Judicial history

The judicial proceedings in this case have been ongoing for months. The first hearing was held on January 12, 2026, and subsequent hearings continued with the presence of the defendants and their lawyers.

In May, the Second Criminal Court of Sulaymaniyah held further hearings. In one of these hearings, the court listened to the statements of a witness and reviewed some of the case documents, but postponed the continuation of the hearing to another time due to the need to review the evidence further.The two main plaintiffs in the case, Bafel Talabani and Qobad Talabani, were not present at that hearing.

The third hearing was scheduled to be held in August, but a complaint by Lahore Talabani’s legal team against one of the judges in the case caused the hearing to be postponed. The lawyers stated that the Kurdistan Regional Court had requested the case, but the investigating judge had refused to send it in the past months.

Subsequently, the Sulaymaniyah court set a new hearing date for the case, and September 10, 2026, was announced as the retrial date.

Charges Raised

The case against Lahore Talabani and his associates consists of several judicial sections. According to published reports, part of the case is being prosecuted under Article 56 of the Iraqi Penal Code and another part under Article 406.Lahore Talabani's lawyers have expressed their views on the nature of the charges and the trial process, but the charges are still in the judicial process and a final verdict has not been issued on them.

Since their arrest, the case of Lahore Talabani and his companions, in addition to the judicial aspect, has become one of the most sensitive political and security cases in Sulaymaniyah; especially since a number of security forces and armed individuals present at the scene were killed during the Lalehzar clash, and after that, disputes have continued regarding the manner of arrest, the trial process, and the claims made by the defendants' lawyers.

Now, with the hearing postponed again, the continuation of the trial of Lahore Talabani, Pulad Talabani, and other defendants is still waiting for a new court date.