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Kirkuk
- On Thursday, May 5, Peshmerga forces repelled a Da’esh attack near Pirde (Alton Kopri). The ministry of the Peshmerga is set to announce details of the terror attack. Separately, tensions arose between the Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army in the Shwan district after the Iraqi Army checkpoint arrested six Peshmerga who were returning to duty from Kirkuk. The Peshmerga were released after hours of intervention by Kurdish officials who were warned of deploying Peshmerga scouts to free them. Elsewhere, security forces announced the capture of a “dangerous” ISIS (Da’esh) terrorist responsible for recruitment in Tobzawa last Friday and the capture of two suicide terrorists who planned to target Kirkuk city during Eid. Despite these arrests, Da’esh activities continued across the disputed territories, including an attack on the 2nd brigade of Iraq’s 96th division near the Sargaran subdistrict on Saturday. According to a preliminary report, military helicopters of the International Coalition foiled the attack after hours of clashes. On Monday, Da’esh terrorists launched two attacks on the federal police near Daquq and Rashad attacking the federal police in Shabija village of Daquq district and Wadi Shahma in Rashad subdistrict, wounding six officers. Meanwhile, the Arab Coalition, led by the acting governor, Rakan Saed, appealed to the Iraqi government for “General Amnesty” in Kirkuk, arguing that many Sunni Arabs are jailed and “falsely” accused of Da’esh membership, the demand was rejected by the government.
- The Turkish-backed Turkmen Front and the Arab Coalition continue media exchanges for a second week over the hiring process in the North Oil Company (NOC). According to statistics leaked by Pro-Turkmen media, Kurds who make up the overwhelming majority of Kirkuk’s population have only eight posts in the NOC, while the Arabs hold 29 senior positions and 14 posts for Turkmen. Kurds account for more than 55% of the population in Kirkuk but face discrimination by the federal and local governments. Meanwhile, both Sunni Arabs and Turkmen Front leaders fight for more posts on Kurdish accounts.
- On World Press Freedom Day, May 3, the Association for the Defense of Journalists’ Rights in Iraq released its annual report, showing Kirkuk as the third-worst province in Iraq for violence against journalists, with 37 cases. The assaults and arrests of Kirkuk’s journalists were conducted by the army, police, and the bodyguards of government officials.
- Citizens expressed outrage after the municipality cut down 200 trees which were planted 40 years ago in several median strips of Kirkuk’s roads. Additionally, Kurdish and Turkmen activists and political figures accused the administration of changing nature by planting 1,350 date trees, part of an Arabization policy, a symbol of the Arab nation. Environmental activists also opposed the move, describing it as a hypocritical move since the same administration signed an executive order on April 21, obligating new college students to plant a tree as a condition of acceptance.
- According to a leaked document of the compensation committee, Mohammed Timimi, a Sunni Arab lawmaker with two of his siblings, received 849 million dinars for their destroyed homes by Da’esh in 2014. However, the leaked information raised anger among the Sunni population, of which only 10% have received compensation since 2015. Timimi has been a lawmaker since 2006, but from 2010 to 2014, he was Iraq’s education director.
- Kirkuk’s April oil export recorded 3,290,062 barrels, a 127% increase compared to March, grossing 304,268,569 US dollars. Kirkuk exported 2,991,060 barrels via the Kirkuk – Ceyhan Pipeline, averaging 101.7 US dollars per barrel. The remainder were exported to Jordan.
Khanaqin
- On April 30, Iraqi forces, including Iranian-backed militias, conducted raids on 24 Kurdish villages of Khanaqin, confiscating light weapons owned by villagers for self-defense against repeated Da’esh attacks. A Kurdish lawmaker raised questions about the legitimacy of the raids since each household can own one firearm, per Iraqi law. According to many residents, the disarming of Khanaqin’s Kurdish villagers will encourage further Da’esh attacks on the area which has already been vulnerable to terror acts since October 16, 2017.
Tuz Khurmatu
- On April 30, Da’esh terrorists attacked Peshmerga forces near the Zanana subdistrict between Tuz Khurmato and Kifri. After 30 minutes of clashes, one Peshmerga suffered light injuries, but the Da’esh attack was repelled.
- The Integrity Commission announced the filing of eight projects for corruption allegations, mainly in service projects. The commission did not release further details about the project or the names of those involved.
Makhmour
- As was the case in Shingal, Iraqi forces deployed large military units with heavy weapons to Makhmour near the refugee camp without announcing a potential military operation. Observers expect a military operation inside the Makhmour Refugee Camp, which houses Kurds from Turkey who had to flee their homes following government attacks and the destruction of their villages dating back to the 1990’s.
Shingal (Sinjar)
- Clashes between Iraqi forces and the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS) resulted in the displacement of one thousand Yazidi families, mainly from Khana Mansour and Sunny district. The Iraqi troops announced their plans of “removing” all armed groups from Shingal. On and off clashes continued for more than a week, but neither side provided official numbers of casualties, despite media reports suggesting dozens of wounded and several deaths on both sides. The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) “voiced “concerns” regarding the displacement of Yazidi civilians. Despite ongoing attempts to calm the situation, senior Iraqi forces traveled to the region and supervised their plans to control the area, part of implementing a security agreement between Baghdad and Erbil.
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