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Iraqi
military deployed to ‘impose security’ in Kirkuk clashes with
Kurdish Peshmerga – reports
RT,
16
October, 2017
Baghdad
has deployed its military and pro-government militias to secure
Kurdish Peshmerga-controlled bases and federal installations in
Kirkuk, urging them to “avoid confrontations” and “protect all
civilians” in the multi-ethnic, oil-rich region.
Early
Monday morning, Iraqi government troops supported by the People's
Mobilization Forces (PMF), a state-loyal umbrella organization
composed of some 40 militias, have started advancing towards
Peshmerga (military force of the autonomous region of Iraqi
Kurdistan) frontlines from Taza, just south of the city of Kirkuk.
The
troops were ordered to “impose
security in Kirkuk in cooperation with Kurdish Peshmerga,” Iraqi
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced on live television. Under
the orders, the army should “secure
bases [and] federal installations in Kirkuk province.” The
troops were also advised “to
cooperate with Peshmerga and avoid confrontations, and to protect all
civilians.”
Iraqi
state TV reported that Counter-Terrorism Service, the federal
government and the 9th division of the Iraqi Army, have already
secured “large
areas” without
any resistance from the Kurdish command.
Kurdish
news channel, Rudaw, however, reports that
clashes between Kurdish and government-led forces have erupted on the
Taza Khurmatu front.
Iraqi
security sources told Reuters that gunfire was heard in Kirkuk while
the Peshmerga were urging the locals to resist. Kurdish sources
meanwhile told the agency that clashes took place in the industrial
zone of Kirkuk, while an artillery exchange took place south of the
city.
As
tensions rise the US Department of Defense urged "all sides to
avoid additional escalatory actions.”
Earlier,
the Kurdistan Security Council stated that Baghdad is trying to
secure the K-1 military base, the Kirkuk airport and the oilfields
which are under the control of the Kurdish fighters.
Earlier
Baghdad and the command of PMF issued a list of demands calling on
Peshmerga forces to leave a number of positions south and west of
Kirkuk so that those outposts can be transferred under the control of
Baghdad. The Kurds were reportedly given a deadline of 2am to comply
with the ultimatum, Rudaw News reported.
The
Kurdish leadership said on Saturday that they would not comply and
leave all of the outposts mentioned in a list of demands, provincial
Governor Najmaldin Karim told reporters.
“The
places that they have demanded, as mentioned in those points, have so
far all been rejected,” Karim was quoted as saying by Rudaw.
Photos on #hashd_al_shaabi pro FB pages allegedly shows Iraqi forces and #hashd_al_shaabi entered first #kerkukneighborhood #كركوك
However,
ahead of the deadline Kurdish forces have voluntarily left Bashir and
Taza, but remained at Kirkuk airport and K-1 military base, which are
now the primary targets for Baghdad.
According
to Peshmerga commander who spoke with Rudaw news, Kirkuk now has
around 9,000 Kurdish troops that can be used to defend the city.
Tensions
between Baghdad and the regional Kurdish government have been tense
in the wake of Kurdistan’s independence referendum late last month
where some 92.7 percent of voters chose to leave Iraq.
Baghdad
immediately denounced the move as “unconstitutional.” Turkey,
Iran and Syria also expressed their opposition to the creation of an
independent Kurdistan over concerns that it may spur separatist
sentiment in their own Kurdish-populated areas.
Ahead
of the launch of the military operation, the Iraqi government accused
Kurdish authorities of harboring Turkey’s outlawed Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) in Kirkuk, calling it “a declaration of war
against other Iraqis and legal security forces.”
Addressing
the issue of the alleged presence of PKK in Kirkuk, Iraqi National
Security Council warned of a “dangerous escalation” in the
region.
“The
central government and regular forces will carry out their duty of
defending the Iraqi people in all its components, including the
Kurds, and of defending Iraq's sovereignty and unity,” the council
said a statement as quoted by Al Jazeera reports.
'Israeli flags won’t save you': #Erdogan threatens Iraqi Kurds with famine over referendum on.rt.com/8o8i
The
Kurdish Peshmerga Ministry quickly dismissed the allegations. Kurdish
leaders also rejected a call by Baghdad to cancel the results of the
September 25 independence vote.
“The
outcome of the referendum will not be nullified,” the Kurdish
region's Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said after consulting
Kurdistan's two main political parties. “Talk of canceling these
results is out of the question and will not address the problems.”
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