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Kirkuk
- On July 3rd, the acting governor of Kirkuk, Rakan Juburi, issued an order to confiscate legal documents such as residence cards from anyone without owning a home in Kirkuk. The step will deprive nearly 200,000 Kurds who returned to Kirkuk after 2003 of residency cards and food ration programs. Public anger and pressure from Kurdish lawmakers have stopped the orders for now. Al Jabouri’s decision violates Article 140 of the constitution, which calls for the normalization of Kirkuk after an Arabization campaign by the former regime lasting decades. Additionally, on July 7th, al Jabouri also decided to deprive the families of fallen Peshmergas of the hiring process for 1,000 new job openings in Kirkuk. According to al Jabouri’s decision, 10% of openings will be granted to families of fallen police, military, and Iranian-backed militias, excluding the Peshmerga forces who lost hundreds of soldiers during the fight against ISIS.
- According to a leaked memorandum from the police to Iraqi security forces in Kirkuk, ten Turkish intelligence vehicles entered the province on June 28th and surveyed areas around the airport. The police noted that all vehicles were black with tinted windows and no license plates. Days after the leak, Kirkuk’s police released a statement and described the memorandum as “fake.”
- On July 1st, Kirkuk security forces announced the arrest of a senior ISIS (Da’esh) leader named “Abu Talha” near Perdi subdistrict. Moreover, an airstrike killed two more ISIS leaders near Dibis district.
- Internal conflicts among the Turkish-backed Turkmen Front exploded after party members filed a criminal case against the former leader Arshad al Salihi. The Turkmen Front complained about Salihi’s “wasting” funds allocated for Turkmen areas. In a video message on his Facebook, Salihi said the court would prove his “innocence,” and he would file a defamation case against his former party. After years of competition, the Turkish-back Turkmen Front suffered immense division between its ultra-nationalist and Sunni Islamist wings.
- According to recent statistics released by the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO), Kirkuk’s revenue from oil exports in June was 377,690,003 USD, grossing 8,228,087 more than May’s sales despite lesser production.
Khanaqin
- Kurdistan’s Peshmerga prevented the Iraqi army from advancing toward natural gas fields in Qadir Karim district. A Peshmerga commander told Kurdistan24 that the Iraqi forces wanted to “set up a checkpoint” near Kurdish forces in the area, ostensibly in response to three rocket attacks on the Khor Mor gas field from June 22nd to June 24th.
- On July 4th, Da’esh terrorists launched two attacks on Keshma village near Jalawla, targeting civilians and a checkpoint of Iraqi forces. As a result, three civilians from the village were wounded. Clashes lasted an hour, including resistance by villagers, leading the terrorists to withdraw.
Makhmour
- On July 5th, the Chief of Staff of the Peshmerga forces Essa Owaiz met with the Chief of Staff of the Iraqi army Abdulaamer Yarullah in Makhmur. The two military officials were accompanied by senior commanders, discussing the “movements of Da’esh terrorists” in the region and further “cooperation.” Baghdad agreed to deploy joint forces in the disputed territories last year, but it has not implemented the decision yet.
- On July 5th, a Turkish drone struck Gali Abbasi village next to Makhmour refugee camp. No casualties have been reported. Since 2017 Turkey has bombed the refugee camp holding Kurds from Turkey.
Shingal (Sinjar)
- On July 7th, Mahmoud al Araaji, the leader of the “Sinjar Shiite Gathering,” criticized the Iraqi government’s “weak” stance in the face of Turkish bombings. During a press conference, al Araaji said:” Turkey’s attacks and threats against Sinjar continue, thanks to the silence of the Iraqi government.” Al Araaji said the districts’ issues have “passed” through three cabinets and have not been resolved yet.” He warned that this would no longer be acceptable, and that the situation would get out of control.