Jalal Talabani to visit Tehran, invited by Iranian officials

Prominent Kurdish figure and head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Jalal Talabani is set to travel to Tehran, the party announced on Friday stating it is a "friendly visit.”

Talabani has been invited by the Iranian officials, and preparations for his visit have been taken before, according to the PUK press office.

He was the sixth President of Iraq since the establishment of the country in 1920. Talabani served in the office from 2005 until 2014.

The Kurdish leader has been away from politics since late 2012 after he suffered a stroke and traveled to Germany to receive medical treatment.

After 18 months of treatment in abroad, Talabani returned to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq on July 19, 2014.

PUK is the third-largest party in the Kurdistan Region. The party has been facing internal political turmoil in the absence of Talabani in the party’s affairs due to his health condition.

His visit to Tehran comes at a time that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has planned to hold an independence referendum on Sep. 25, 2017, a move strongly opposed by the Iranian officials.