BAGHDAD Reuters) -Masoud Barzani, the Iraqi Kurdish leader who first took up arms against Saddam Hussein as a teenage guerrilla, remains a towering figure in Kurdish politics as Iraq heads into its November 11 election.

Though he no longer holds an official post, Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is urging a strong Kurdish turnout to safeguard regional interests and strengthen its hand in fraught negotiations with Baghdad.

Barzani’s political journey has been shaped by decades of rebellion, betrayal, and uneasy truces with successive Iraqi governments. Now in his late 70s, he continues to wield influence behind the scenes, often referred to as “President” in Kurdish media and diplomatic circles.

His legacy looms large over the race for seats in the national parliament in Baghda

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