New Delhi: Iraqi government forces entered central Kirkuk after taking key installations outside the disputed city from Kurdish fighters.
The Iraqi military moved into Kirkuk three weeks after the Kurdistan Region held independence referendum.
Residents of Kurdish-controlled areas, including Kirkuk had backed secession from Iraq in a 25 September vote.
Iraq’s Kurds defied widespread opposition to vote in a historic independence referendum, sparking fresh tensions with Baghdad and threats from Turkey while Washington warned it would “increase instability”.
A high turnout of 72 percent was registered, with 3.3 million of the 4.58 million registered voters taking part, election commission spokesman Shirwan Zirar said late Monday.
After the takeover, the Kurdish Peshmerga command has said that the Iraqi government will pay a “heavy price” for its military campaign in Kirkuk, which it described as “a declaration of war against the nation of Kurdistan”.
The Peshmerga
Peshmerga means “one who faces death.” The unit is predominantly composed of ethnic Kurds but they also host a number of Arabs and religious minorities such as Yazidis. In addition to the ethnic and religious diversity of Peshmerga units, they are also notable for their inclusion of all-female brigades.
They are responsible for defending the land, people and institutions of Iraqi Kurdistan.
However, the Peshmerga force itself is largely divided and is controlled separately by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by Masoud Barzani and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of his late rival Jalal Talabani.
Peshmerga has accused a group within the PUK of “treason” for allegedly assisting Baghdad’s advance in Kirkuk.
According to them, some of the leaders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) had withdrawn from areas they held. The PUK has denied the accusations, according to Kurdish news portal Rudaw.
Kirkuk is an oil-rich province and has been claimed by the Kurds and the central government. It is thought to have a Kurdish majority, but its provincial capital has large Arab and Turkmen populations.
Earlier, the Iraqi government had implemented a no-fly zone over Iraqi Kurdistan, following the recent independence referendum.
