Iraqi troops are removing a flag of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region in Kirkuk
The division is growing between the two key political powers in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region as Kurdish Peshmerga forces have lost Kirkuk city and some nearby areas to the Iraqi Army and its allies.
On Monday, Lahur Sheikh Jangi, the head of the Kurdistan Region Intelligence Agency and a prominent member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) released a statement on the situation over Kirkuk city.
Sheikh Jangi denied claims of media loyal to Iraqi President Massoud Barzani and his Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) that he ordered the Peshmerga’s 70th Division to retreat from Kirkuk and added that forces deployed in Kirkuk were under Barzani’s control, according to Millet Press.
“Today’s developments in Kirkuk was Barzani’s plan to pull Kirkuk out of PUK control. It was result of the referendum and repetition of 31 August 1996,” Sheikh Jangi said. “We said from the beginning that this referendum is not aiming to declare independence but no one listened. We tried to announce seize fire yesterday to calm the situation but they didn’t listen and brought this situation on Kirkuk. Barzani should come out now and say something as he guaranteed no harm to be caused from the referendum but no single state supported the independence vote.”
Sheikh Jangi also promised to protect “people of Kirkuk.”
Earlier on Monday, reports appeard that the PUK-linked units of the Peshmerga abadoned its positions in Kirkuk city and allowed the Iraqi Army and its allies to achieve a rapid victory in the standoff. Some experts linked this with the recent visit of Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani to the Iraqi Kurdistan.
Soleimani is a commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Quds Force is responsible for extraterritorial operations of the IRGC.
Soleimani has allegedly reached some “deal” with the PUK leadership that allowed government forces to take Kirkuk city almost without clashes.
At the same time, reports circulating that Turkey asked Barzani to abandon Kirkuk and its oil fields in exchange for keeping its border port of Ibrahim Khalil open for oil export from the region. The reports initially appeared in Al-Ghad Press that quoted an alleged source in the office of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.
a lot of double traitors and agents of zio satanic terrorists being exposed one by one with their wheeling and dealing so it seems – only awaiting confirmation from reliable sources
RT Story omits that Kirkuk is about 80% Kurdish and voted 77% for independence during the referendum.
show the link here then!
You don’t need a link to do basic research about Kirkuk.
Yes, as usual you don’t need a link or any other kind of proof to spread BS.
I knew already, just to verify your claim about RT article.
So, tomorrow, the Kurds inade another city, drive out Christians, Arabs, Yazidis, Shia, and have their little sham election and the world is supposed to recognize their independence and the Iraqi government, who represents and protects all minorities, is supposed to just stand back and let it happen because the Kurds’ co-plotters, CIA and Israhell, might imposed a no-fly zone and bomb the sh*t out of them!!! Are you nuts!!!??? That sort of Sh*t worked for the expansionist, racist, supremacist USA anglo-saxons in the 1800’s, but not today!!!!
man you are full of hate…..I hope one day the kurd get a homeland and rise against facist erdogan….
The kurd should find other land if they don’t want to integrate. The problem with the kurd is they considered themselves to be Kurds period. Not as a citizens of Turkey, Iraq, Syria. They view themselves as the tragic victims of turks and arabs with better culture and values (by values they are getting closer to western and further aligned themselves with the west) than their counterpart. There’s a country exist in middle east with such mindset and it’s called Israel. Their victimization eventually gave way to racism.
Its kind of reasonable what you ask. But think this: The kurds in Irak were granted and enjoy autonomy from the central government but here their plan was to cut a piece (the oil rich by the way) from Irak for themselves that in my eyes is treason. To what puropose? To weaken Irak even more so Israel (who else) can feel even stronger.
No problem, let them set up shop in israel where two hundred thousand kurdo jews already live or in unclesamland who are their benefactors.plenty land there!
hope dies last. after kurds.
Another anti-Kurd, anti-Jew fearmonger.
He is neither anti-Kurd, neither anti-Jew. Just like me.
This technicians and twists won’t work. You can’t silence people by branding them.
Have you actually read what he wrote? Talking about branding, you were the one that branded me as “extreme nationalist” and “hardcore zionist”.
Hopeless. You became a professional word twister. Since when “your ideas seem like” is equal to branding?
I remind you again. You can’t convince people of something which doesn’t exist by repeating a lie. That seems the only thing you do nowadays.
He talked about the traitors among Kurds, the role of US and Israel. Which part is related to anti-Kurd and anti-Jew again?
You like playing with words don’t you? You care about examples and you are missing the main point. I don’t say that about the things he wrote, I say that about the way he wrote these things.
I’m talking about the exact things he wrote. You want to “interpret” his words? better ask him directly.
you are hater
A garga is right.
A Garga is always right! Hence the name ;)
According to NPR (U.S. media outlet) the streets of Kirkuk are full with people celebrating. They’re glad the Kurds are gone. Just thought you should know. Oh, and the U.S. govt’ is completely staying out of this.
DNA studies show kurds are native to the region for at least 6,000 years. What are you talking about? Or are you just making an anti kurds racist rant like @partisangirl?
What’s that got to do with anything ?
I think he’s having a mental breakdown :))
are you nazi, that you come with eugenics?
i see only, you never had argue.
Yes of course.now that they are losing control of situation they are.
Μaybe kirkuk itself yet outlying heartland is not kurd majority.
Bullshit if they weren’t. They’ve ignored the central government mandate with impunity once they got hit right in their teeth they cry wolf !
Iran friendly PUK made a deal with Baghdad and betrayed Kirkuk for cash.
There were miles and miles of trenches around Kirkuk and 20,000 Peshmerga who left Kirkuk without fighting, racing away to safety. Leaving 900,000 citizens of Kirkuk to the mercy of the Shia Invaders. PUK even pulled the guard detail for the Kurdish Governor of Kirkuk, saying he was in his own.
The deal to betray Kirkuk was allegedly made at Mam Talabani’s Funeral.
Shame.
Again, you cannot invade your own country. Until the KRG is an officially recognized country, that is by the rest of the world, which so far doesn’t seem to be happening, until then the Iraqi army can do whatever it wants in its own country.
The US government officially considers the PKK a terrorist group thanks to its long and bloody insurgency against Turkey, a NATO ally.
According to several reports of the Iraqi media, the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) is not part of the ongoing operation in Kirkuk city. The decision not to let the PMU take part in such sensitive operation, is a very wise decision of the Iraqi Federal Government.
Nobody fairly considers the pkk a terrorist group these dsys. At least 3 EU courts have ruled it is not. Now 30 years ago, it was a different story… But pkk is an insurgency in Turkey by modern standards. The US wouldn’t be allied with Pkk spin off YPG if they were actually terrorist. Russia has sponsored pkk for 30 years and never said pkk was terrorist.
I’m sorry, what?!? The US wouldn’t be allied with (x,y,z) if they were actually terrorist[s]? You are either seriously misinformed or a fool – the USA has been arming, training and paying the salaries of terrorists in just Syria alone since the start of the regime-change mission to destroy Assad’s government. The people that run the USA don’t give two sh*ts about “terrorism” which is clearly evidenced by their willingness to give weaponry to al-Qaeda groups despite them allegedly being behind the 9-11 attacks. All well-documented by those “conspiracy buffs” the New York Times and Washington Post. Also, a quick search for “PKK terrorist attacks” seems to refute your suggestion.
Don’t mistake the willingness of Washington to work with any militant group that is aligned with their “strategic interest” for them actually considering that group to not be terrorists – the USA’s terrorist list has been very flexible over the years. Just face it – the inclusion of Kirkuk in the referendum was a massive blunder. It basically gave the Iraqi government the perfect justification to send in the troops and tanks – in fact, it compelled them to. If they had allowed the Erbil wanna-be regime to simply annex Kirkuk, they would be inviting a Libya-style situation in Iraq.
Why do you believe the kurds aren’t going to counterattack and retake Kirkuk??? Iraq can’t hold kirkuk. Too many kurds live there…
Sounds a bit like the comments from the other day – when the Kurdish legions were going to “march on Baghdad”!! I’ll believe it when I see it. As it stands, there is no internationally recognized “Kurdistan”, there is only the autonomous region of Iraq – which does not include Kirkuk. Which means that the Iraqi government is actually enforcing their legal mandate – if Kurdish militias were to attack Kirkuk now that would constitute an act of military insurgency against their legal government. It is one thing to hold a non-binding referendum, but quite another to make war on your legal government.
Kurds are pissed. They may hang the Talibani family. 90% chance they counterattack and retake Kirkuk.
They would hang them because they are talibani ?
Too many nepotistic dynasties, in my opinion. Also, the sectarian nature of this “Kurdistan” issue will not be popular in the region – mark my words.
Kurds may hang the Talibani for taking a bribe and giving Kirkuk away.
Kirkuk isn’t theirs.
EXCELLENT POST, very informative.
You assumed that the US only ally themselves with non terrorist. PKK is ruled as terrorist by US. YPG isn’t because they are different branch. The entity itself is one with members freely moving in between. Just like how they would excluding Al nusra rebranded offshoot.
Usa will partner with any dogs of war it chooses.that is why it set up,trained and funded isis and various other headchoppers.
Pkk was commie then and usa would not let any one come close to it. Usa wobt support them in turkey as it displeases er- dog-an but loves them in syria as it fights against assad and now against isis.
YPG is allied with Assad against ISIS and also against HTS and against Turkey. YPG is not fighting against Assad.
YPG has up until it was remade into SDF , worked with Assad , but allowing US troops on to Syrian soil , is unreasonable . If you align with the country that has waged a six year war against you and your nation , is treason .
What planet are you living on? Ypg is part of zioyanki stans sdf bullshit army .thus is army that is fighting assad army over euphrates river for oilfields.
It’s never as simple as you believe. Russian Defense Minister is in Jerusalem today. And Russia is protecting YPG in Efrin.
Irrelevant but true. We are talking re ypg in general. In afrin assad and ypg and russia all on side at least until russia let turkey in to massacre them a week ago.
In ne syria ,russia and assad are against them as seen by sdf wanting their own country in syria and sdf ypg letting isis headchoppers attack russian troops almost to their death.isis walked through sdf terrirory with hardly a nod,thank you.
But truly today’s friends ar tomorrow’s enemies. Look erdoganland and usa and erdoganland,qatar and saudis.
you lost, because you are wrong. kurds must be pushed back in mountains. over 900 m altitude. that is your home, the grassfields.
Well maybe the Kurds should not have associated with ISIS in the illegal oil trade.
By looking the reaction on the streets of Kirkuk, those 900,000 looked pretty happy to see Peshmega’s backs. Of course members of occupying Kurdish government, that was involved in Barzani’s version of ethnic cleansing, had to run for their lives, because new authorities in the city couldn’t guarantee their safety from citizens of Kirkuk who wanted to show personal gratitude for their past outstanding public service.
no shia entered kircoock
“At the same time, reports circulating that Turkey asked Barzani to abandon Kirkuk and its oil fields in exchange for keeping its border port of Ibrahim Khalil open for oil export from the region.”
Goes to show you how heavily dependent the Kurds are on oil money. All the boasts of pro-separatist internet trolls on how Kurdistan can be self-sufficient have been falsified.
What happen between bloody dictators Assad and Erdogan? They are now partners in crime?
Consume more CNN, worthless goy. Erdogan only cares about Erdogan and the rest of us know this.
Half right erdogan is bloody dictator.
Eventually the Kurds will get their homeland. The difficulty is that the territory they want encompasses parts of Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran. That is 4 countries to negotiate with, each having their own agenda and affiliations. Particularly Turkey who appear to have a real dislike for the idea of any. kurdishindependence. Taking it a step at a time and negotiating Fully Autonomous Regions within their existing countries would be the logical 1st step, with a future amalgamation of the regions being the end game.
in each kurd 1 kg mercury, an they can amalgamise
ypi perfectly descirebed why they should not get autonomy.
It is one thing for good looking Kurdish girls to pose with guns in front of the Hollywood cameras, and quite another to fight in a real battle. Kurdish girls understood that real battles are for real men, and rightfully left the city without looking back.
nice
Everyone that is an anti-Kurd fanatic should see that Kurds only want to fight ISIS.
we see the big liar serious dude
US deep state shills really think they can win the argument by sending few pajama amy trolls on independent media. How’s it going so far? Ha! Fags.