Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said in a tweet that the referendum showed the desire of the Kurdish people to achieve their rights and ambitions using peaceful and democratic means.

“Today we commemorate with pride the anniversary of our referendum, an expression of the popular will that demonstrated the Kurdistani peoples’ desire for liberty and their hopes to achieve their legitimate rights and aspirations in a peaceful and democratic manner,” he said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani, who was a primary driver of the effort to hold the referendum, tweeted a photo of himself at a campaign rally.

“We do not bow down,” he wrote as an accompanying message, NRT reported.

In his own message marking the anniversary, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Co-President Lahur Sheikh Jangi struck a different tone from the KDP officials, focusing more on the effect of the referendum rather than its intention.

“The fate of Kurdistan’s people and its achievements were sacrificed to the misinterpretation and pride of a number of unwise and ignorant politicians,” he wrote in a post published across his social media accounts.

“Despite the failure of the referendum and desperation of a nation about independence, the efforts of the [PUK] to achieve self-determination will continue,” he added.

Overwhelmingly supported by those who showed up at the polls, some allies and rivals had warned the Region’s officials against holding the referendum ahead of the vote.

Small pockets of domestic critics also opposed the timing of the referendum.

Less than a month after the vote, the Iraqi Security Forces and the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) launched an offensive that took control of Kirkuk and much of the disputed areas from the Peshmerga, including critically important oil and gas fields.

The loss sparked bitter recriminations, with supporters of the KDP saying that the PUK had committed treason by not standing up to the assault and some in the PUK blaming the KDP for failing to heed warnings from allies not to hold the referendum.

On Friday, many residents of the Kurdistan Region took to social media to commemorate the anniversary.

Reporter’s code: 50101