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Kirkuk
- In a new tactic, ISIS (Da’esh) terrorists launched several attacks on eastern Kirkuk near Kurdish villages and districts. On August 28, several terrorists opened fire on several shepherds in Bayanlo village of the Laylan district, killing one named Zirak Zahir Hamid. The incident occurred when the shepherds put their cattle in the pasture. On August 29, several terrorists kidnapped two civilians near the belt by the Jabal Bor oil field. Kirkuk police said it formed a search committee in the area to find the kidnapped. On August 30, the security forces launched a search operation in the area and clashed with a Da’esh scout, killing one terrorist and wounding another. On August 31, many terrorists were chased by the residents of Salayi village.
- In the latest Arabization policies against the Kurds, the Iraqi ministry of health ordered its Kirkuk department to issue memorandums only in Arabic. Details of the ministry’s letter were leaked to the media, raising anger among the Kurdish population in the province since the Kurdish language is officially recognized in Iraq’s constitution.
- Several privately owned generators stopped supplying electricity after a hike in gas prices and the government’s failure to deliver fuel with subsidized prices. Owners vowed more strikes since they did not receive gas from the government as agreed upon in the past. In reaction, the acting governor Rakan al Jabouri raised the cost of generator amps on citizens by 40%, sparking protests.
- According to the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company (SOMO), the revenue from Kirkuk oil exports in August grossed 102,010,004 US dollars. The SOMO statistics released on September 1 showed 1,109,528 barrels of oil exported through the Cihan Pipeline to Turkey with revenue of 102,010,004 US dollars, averaging a barrel sale for 91.94 US dollars. In July, Kirkuk exported 2,344,536 barrels of oil to Turkey. Meanwhile, no oil was exported from Kirkuk fields to Jordan in August, unlike the previous six months.
Khanaqin
- The Public Security (Asayesh) of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) withdrew from the Khanaqin district after orders from the Iraqi Operations Command in Diyala. The Asayesh said they were on “duty” in the past two months in Khanaqin. According to a statement by the Asayesh, they “retreated to the outskirts of the city” and will return to the district “whenever requested.”
Makhmour
- On August 29, a 52-year-old father of six daughters was killed in a Turkish drone strike on the Makhmur refugee camp. Two other civilians were injured in the bombing, police said. The Turkish attack was carried out simultaneously with an airstrike on the Sinjar district.
Shingal (Sinjar)
- On August 29, a Turkish drone struck an area near Khanasur village in the Sinjar district. Two fighters of the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS) were killed, and one was seriously wounded.
- On August 27, at the initiative of Mir Hazim Tahsin Beg, the Emir (leader) of the Yazidis held a large-scale meeting with the Yazidi spiritual leader (Baba Sheikh), tribe chiefs, political parties, and public figures at the Lalish Temple in Sheikhan. Tahsin Beg discusses the situation in Sinjar and the Yazidi areas, including how to resolve the crisis in Sinjar in terms of security, primary services, the return of the displaced, and youth migration. According to the statement by Tahsin Beg, the meeting aimed to achieve unity among the Yazidis.