WhiteFeather
03-14-2011, 10:53 AM
Conflicting reports of Kirkuk governor’s imminent dismissal
Monday, March 14th 2011 2:33 PM
Kirkuk, March 14 (AKnews) – A member of the Kirkuk provincial council reported on Monday that pressure from Kurdish parties has led to the council agreeing to dismiss Kirkuk’s Governor Abdul Rahman Mustafa.
Mohammed Khalil told AKnews that the members of the Kirkuk provincial council have agreed to replace Mustafa with the Kurdistan Blocs Coalition (KBC)’s Najem al-Din Karim.
Meanwhile the leader of the council Rebwar Talabani has refuted Khalil’s comments, saying that the issue will be decided in a meeting tomorrow and not before.
The oil-rich province of Kirkuk, 250 km north of the Iraqi capital is one of the most hotly disputed territories between the Kurdistan regional government and the federal government in Baghdad. It is populated by a mixture of Kurds, Turkmen, Arabs and Christians.
The Kurds have been seeking to integrate the province into the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region since the Kurdish uprising in 1991, claiming it to be historically Kurdish.
Tensions are currently rising in the multi-ethnic province over the recent deployment of the Kurdish security forces that, according to Kurdish leaders are there to protect the province's Kurdish and Turkoman populations.
The province's Arabs and Turkomen however have described the move as a “violation of the federal government’s sovereignty” and are demanding their immediate removal.
The Iraqi President, himself a Kurd and the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), threw fuel onto the fire last week when he controversially described the province as the “Jerusalem of Kurdistan” and called for a united effort to liberate it from its “occupiers”.
"We must not forget that there are areas not reunited with the (Kurdistan) region such as Kirkuk, the Quds (Jerusalem) of Kurdistan,” President Talabani said.
Deeming the Iraqi President’s remark highly inappropriate, campaigners gathered in Baghdad today demanding an official apology from Talabani or his resignation.
Reported by Anmar al-Ansari
Rn/Ka/AKnews
http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/4/225065/
Monday, March 14th 2011 2:33 PM
Kirkuk, March 14 (AKnews) – A member of the Kirkuk provincial council reported on Monday that pressure from Kurdish parties has led to the council agreeing to dismiss Kirkuk’s Governor Abdul Rahman Mustafa.
Mohammed Khalil told AKnews that the members of the Kirkuk provincial council have agreed to replace Mustafa with the Kurdistan Blocs Coalition (KBC)’s Najem al-Din Karim.
Meanwhile the leader of the council Rebwar Talabani has refuted Khalil’s comments, saying that the issue will be decided in a meeting tomorrow and not before.
The oil-rich province of Kirkuk, 250 km north of the Iraqi capital is one of the most hotly disputed territories between the Kurdistan regional government and the federal government in Baghdad. It is populated by a mixture of Kurds, Turkmen, Arabs and Christians.
The Kurds have been seeking to integrate the province into the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region since the Kurdish uprising in 1991, claiming it to be historically Kurdish.
Tensions are currently rising in the multi-ethnic province over the recent deployment of the Kurdish security forces that, according to Kurdish leaders are there to protect the province's Kurdish and Turkoman populations.
The province's Arabs and Turkomen however have described the move as a “violation of the federal government’s sovereignty” and are demanding their immediate removal.
The Iraqi President, himself a Kurd and the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), threw fuel onto the fire last week when he controversially described the province as the “Jerusalem of Kurdistan” and called for a united effort to liberate it from its “occupiers”.
"We must not forget that there are areas not reunited with the (Kurdistan) region such as Kirkuk, the Quds (Jerusalem) of Kurdistan,” President Talabani said.
Deeming the Iraqi President’s remark highly inappropriate, campaigners gathered in Baghdad today demanding an official apology from Talabani or his resignation.
Reported by Anmar al-Ansari
Rn/Ka/AKnews
http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/4/225065/