Kurds to unite against Diyala district changes
Diyala governor to probe disappearance of nearly 400 gazelles
All Kurdish oil exports to be handed over to Baghdad: Source
Solutions for Erbil-Baghdad disputes reached, talks to continue: Iraqi parliament
PM Barzani, Iraqi parliament speaker discuss budget disputes
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) will host a meeting of Kurdish political parties in the disputed city of Khanaqin in Diyala province to present a unified stance against changes to Kurdish-majority subdistricts in the province, a senior PUK official said.
The Iraqi government last week approved changes in Diyala province that will see the merging of predominantly-Kurdish subdistricts of Qaratapa, Jabara, Koks, and Kulajo into a new Qaratapa district.
The decision has been deemed by Kurds as a renewed effort to alter the demographics of the disputed province and seize territory from Kurdish control, with Koks subdistrict falling inside the boundaries of the Kurdistan Region's Garmiyan administration.
Sherko Mirwais, a PUK leadership official and head of the party's Khanaqin office, called the changes a 'threat to all of Kurdistan and the future of Kurds in Kurdish areas outside the Kurdistan Region's administration.'
Kurdish officials call disputed areas 'Kurdish areas outside the Kurdistan Region's administration.'
'We have invited all Kurdish parties to gather, and tomorrow, we will make a collective decision to reject this injustice being committed upon the Kurds,' he told Rudaw on Monday.
Describing the decision as 'illegal,' Mirwais claimed that the decision is politically motivated and is spearheaded by Iraqi political parties in Baghdad, especially with the approaching federal parliament elections in November.
'The situation created in Diyala province is an example of a complex and dangerous situation in all Kurdish areas outside the Kurdistan Region's administration. Kurds, representatives, and Kurdish officials in Baghdad must be well aware of this chauvinistic political intention,' he stressed.
Earlier this month, the sole PUK member of the Diyala Provincial Council condemned the decision as politically motivated.
'We reject the decision to make Qaratapa subdistrict a district as it is political, falls under Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution, and should not be tampered with,' Aws al-Mahdawi told Rudaw, adding that Qaratapa's population does not amount to the required 400,000 to upgrade it to a district.
Karwan Yarwais, a lawmaker in the Iraqi parliament from the PUK, on Friday stated that the decision to turn Qaratapa into a district violates the Iraqi constitution, which prohibits changes to territories disputed between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) until Article 140 is fully implemented.
Following the fall of the Baath regime in 2003, Iraq began a policy of de-Arabization under Article 140 of the constitution, aiming to reverse the demographic changes imposed by former dictator Saddam Hussein.
The failure to fully implement it, however, has been cited as one of the main reasons for the continued attempts at demographic change in the disputed territories.
Nwenar Fatih contributed to this report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Shafaq News
3 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Iraqi Minister sounds alarm on "serious challenges"
Shafaq News – New York Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Planning, Mohammed Ali Tamim, said on Monday that the country continues to face major challenges, particularly those related to climate change and the worsening water shortage. Representing Iraq at the opening session of the 2025 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development—held by the United Nations in New York from July 21 to 24 to assess global progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—Tamim stressed that the water crisis remains one of Iraq's most urgent challenges. He expressed gratitude for the UN's continued support to developing countries and acknowledged the meaningful cooperation of international partners in addressing this critical issue. Earlier, Iraq's Green Observatory estimated the country's annual groundwater reserves at 3.4 billion cubic meters, with sustainable yields potentially exceeding 5 billion cubic meters per year. Official Iraqi data indicate the country could face a 20% decline in surface water availability by 2035, driven by upstream flow reductions and the escalating impacts of climate change.
Shafaq News
3 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Iraq faces oil export reckoning as Turkiye ends historic pipeline deal
Shafaq News – Baghdad Turkiye's decision to terminate a decades-old oil pipeline agreement with Iraq has exposed deep structural vulnerabilities in Baghdad's export strategy, according to Iraqi economic expert Ahmed Abdul Rabeh. Speaking to Shafaq News on Monday, Abdul Rabeh said Ankara's move to end the 1973 pipeline accord—announced by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and published in the Official Gazette—signals a strategic realignment in Turkish energy policy and reflects Ankara's broader resistance to an international arbitration ruling in Iraq's favor. 'The decision not to resume oil pumping through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan line highlights Turkiye's shift away from previous international obligations,' Abdul Rabeh stated. 'It also reveals Iraq's overdependence on southern export routes, which now handle over 90% of total crude shipments.' The suspension of oil exports via the pipeline dates back to March 2023, when an international arbitration tribunal in Paris ordered Turkiye to pay Iraq $1.4B in damages. The ruling stemmed from a long-standing legal dispute triggered by the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) unilateral oil exports through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline, which Baghdad said violated constitutional authorities. Since the ruling, oil exports from both the KRG and the Kirkuk fields have come to a complete halt, costing Iraq an estimated $20B in lost revenues, according to KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani. Abdul Rabeh emphasized that Ankara is using the impending expiry of the bilateral oil agreement—set for July 2026—as a legal buffer, allowing it to avoid immediate compliance with the arbitration ruling while preparing for a renegotiation on more favorable terms. 'This crisis has exposed Iraq's lack of redundancy in export infrastructure,' Abdul Rabeh warned. 'By relying almost exclusively on Basra's southern terminals, Iraq is increasingly vulnerable to logistical bottlenecks, political instability, or sabotage.' He called for an urgent national strategy to diversify Iraq's energy exports. Proposed alternatives include accelerating development of the Iraq–Jordan oil pipeline, reviving talks on access to Egypt's SUMED pipeline, and expanding capacity at southern ports. Abdul Rabeh also stressed the importance of internal political coordination, particularly between Baghdad and Erbil, to create a unified approach to oil governance. 'Activating agreements with SOMO and aligning Baghdad-KRG export strategies are essential steps,' he said. He added that Iraq should use its proposed 'Development Road' infrastructure project—a flagship economic corridor connecting Basra to Turkiye and Europe—as leverage in talks with Ankara. 'Linking energy cooperation with broader trade incentives may strengthen Iraq's position.' End of a 50-Year Partnership The 1973 Turkiye-Iraq pipeline agreement underpinned more than five decades of bilateral energy cooperation, allowing Iraq to ship millions of barrels of crude from Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. The deal, updated several times—in 1976, 1981, 1986, and 2011—was extended by a pivotal 2010 protocol, which included international arbitration clauses under French law. In 2014, Baghdad filed for arbitration after KRG began exporting oil independently through the pipeline. The tribunal's 2023 decision, which favored Iraq, marked a turning point in the legal and commercial aspects of the agreement. On July 17, Iraq's Council of Ministers approved a new internal agreement with the KRG to restart crude flows. The deal set a flat transportation fee of $16 per barrel and included production cost subsidies, but Turkiye has so far declined to reopen the pipeline. Abdul Rabeh concluded that while Turkiye's move poses immediate risks to Iraq's export capacity, it also presents an opportunity. 'If Baghdad seizes this moment to modernize its energy infrastructure and unify its domestic front, the country could emerge with a stronger, more resilient export system.'
Rudaw Net
3 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Iraq's ruling coalition condemns drone attacks on Kurdistan Region
Also in Iraq Iraqi parliament fails to discuss drone attacks on Kurdistan Region Iraq's top court rejects lawsuits against Kurdish parliament PM Sudani welcomes new commander of anti-ISIS coalition Iraq cannot control militias attacking Kurdistan Region, says MP A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq's ruling Coordination Framework coalition on Monday condemned the recent drone attacks on Kurdistan Region's oil infrastructure, calling on Baghdad to take a firm stance in this regard. 'The Coordination Framework condemned the ongoing bombardment targeting oil companies in the Kurdistan Region, as it represents a direct threat to national wealth, public interests, a blow to the investment environment, and a blatant violation of stability. It calls on the government to take a firm stance to uncover who is behind these attacks and prevent their recurrence,' read a statement from the coalition following a periodic meeting. Since early July, nearly 20 drone attacks have hit the Kurdistan Region, mostly targeting oil fields and causing significant financial losses. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks and there have been no new attacks since Erbil and Baghdad reached a new agreement on finances and oil exports on Thursday. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has directly accused Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) of being behind the drone attacks - a claim denied by Baghdad. The Iraqi government has condemned the attacks but has taken no steps to stop them. The federal parliament was set to discuss the drone attacks on the Region on Monday but failed after almost all Kurdish lawmakers boycotted the session for unknown reasons. The Kurdistan Region's Presidency, Council of Ministers, and Ministry of Natural Resources have all strongly condemned the attacks, describing them as attempts to cripple the Region's vital oil infrastructure. They called on the federal government to hold the perpetrators to account. The international community has also condemned the attacks.
