On Thursday 19 September 2024, the Director General of Syriac Culture and Arts in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, Kaldo Ramzi Oghanna, participated in the opening ceremony of the first Nahla Festival, which lasted for three days in Duhok Governorate’s Nahla Valley.
The opening ceremony was attended by official, political, religious and public delegations from various areas where our people are present in the homeland and abroad, as the ceremony began its activities with a speech by the head of the festival committee, activist Mikhael Benjamin, followed with another speech from the Ancient Church of the East’s Bishop of Adiabene, Mar Shimon Daniel.
The ceremony included the recitation of a number of poems, the most prominent of which was one of mourning for the late great artist Evin Agassi, in addition to a group performance of his national song “Dargushta d-Mardutha” (Cradle of Civilization) in his memory, and a dedication to the spirit of the deceased, who passed away a few days ago in the United States of America.
The festival’s activities also included an exhibition of traditional tools from the popular heritage of our people’s villages in the region, another for local food products, and another section for books.
At the end of the festival’s first day, the district’s locals provided a dinner for the attendees, including popular dishes from the region’s cultural heritage.
