Kurdish leaders refuse to reject referendum result

[Anthea]

Kurdish Peshmerga 'given deadline' in Kirkuk

Kurdish Peshmerga fighters say Iraq's central government has ordered them to surrender key military positions in the disputed city of Kirkuk within hours.

They were given a deadline of 02:00 on Sunday (23:00 GMT on Saturday) to quit military facilities and oil fields.

Brief clashes also erupted between Kurdish forces and Shia militia backing the Iraqi government.

Tensions have been on the rise since Kurds held a referendum on independence last month, which Iraq called illegal.

The oil-rich province of Kirkuk is claimed by both the Kurds and Baghdad, though the two sides were recently united in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took control of much of the province in 2014, when IS militants swept across northern Iraq and the army collapsed.

The Iraqi parliament asked Prime Minster Haider al-Abadi to send troops to Kirkuk and other disputed areas after the official referendum results - which overwhelmingly backed independence - were proclaimed.

The referendum was held in three autonomous provinces of Iraqi Kurdistan, but also in nearby Kurdish-held areas including Kirkuk.

The province, which bears the same name as the city, is thought to have a Kurdish majority, but Kirkuk has large Arab and Turkmen populations.

On Saturday, there was a brief outbreak of fighting near Kirkuk, with each side blaming the other, reports the BBC's Orla Guerin in Iraq.

Mr Abadi said last week he would accept disputed areas being governed by a "joint administration" and that he did not want an armed confrontation.

On Thursday, the prime minister and the Iraqi military reiterated that they had no plans for a military operation in Kirkuk and were focused on recapturing the last IS foothold in Iraq near the border with Syria.

But since then there has been a major build up of Iraqi forces around the city and Kurdish officials say the Peshmerga have been ordered to defend their positions "at any cost".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-41621754

[Anthea]

Kurdish leaders refuse to reject referendum result

Kurdish leaders have refused Iraqi government demands to reject the result of an independence referendum ahead of talks on the future of Iraqi Kurdistan.

They met Iraqi President Fuad Masum on Sunday in a bid to reduce spiralling tensions following the vote, which the central government called illegal.

Government-backed Shia troops and Kurdish fighters are currently facing off near the disputed city of Kirkuk.

However, Kurdish leaders say they want "to reach peaceful resolution".

They reject the "military option" but are "ready to defend" the city against outside forces, said Hemin Hawrami, an aide for Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani.

Iraq's central government had demanded they reject the result of the referendum, held in three autonomous provinces of Iraqi Kurdistan, but also in nearby Kurdish-held areas including Kirkuk, before beginning talks.

The government also denied setting a deadline for Kurdish fighters to withdraw from key sites in Kirkuk, which has now passed.

The Iraqi parliament asked Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to send troops to Kirkuk and other disputed areas after the official referendum results - which overwhelmingly backed independence - were proclaimed.

The province, which bears the same name as the city, is thought to have a Kurdish majority, but Kirkuk has large Arab and Turkmen populations.

On Saturday, there was a brief outbreak of fighting near Kirkuk, with each side blaming the other, reports the BBC's Orla Guerin in Iraq.

In an attempt to stop tensions spiralling further still, President Masum, himself a Kurd, met with leaders from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in Dukan on Sunday.

After it finished, Mr Hawrami sent a series of tweets, one of which said: "Good news on reiterating our national unity in the face of all pressure."

However, he also said Kurdish political leaders were not prepared to accept any preconditions before sitting down to negotiate with Baghdad.

There will not be any unilateral negotiation with Baghdad by either PUK or KDP. If there be any negotiation with Baghdad it will be a joint delegation representing all Kurdistan parties. KDP/PUK reject any demands to nullify the referendum results. Refuse preconditions

The oil-rich Kirkuk province is claimed by both the Kurds and Baghdad, though the two sides were recently united in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group.

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took control of much of the province in 2014, when ISIS militants swept across northern Iraq and the army collapsed.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-41629334

[Anthea]

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took control of much of the province in 2014

The correct phrase is:

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took back control of much of the province in 2014

As in: took back control from the stealing Arabs and an Iraqi government that pushed the Kurds out of Kirkuk and actually PAID Arabs to move into Kirkuk and take control of Kurdish homes and businesses