Peshmerga, Shia Hashd al-Shaabi militia clash near Mosul dam

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – At least nine people were killed Wednesday morning in clashes between the Kurdish Peshmerga Forces and the Iranian-backed Shia Hashd al-Shaabi militia near Mosul, according to a military intelligence officer.

A firefight broke out after Hashd al-Shaabi fighters failed to acknowledge Peshmerga warnings not to advance toward the Mosul dam. 

The Mosul dam has been under Peshmerga control since August 2014, after the Islamic State (IS) emerged in northern Iraq and drove Iraqi Forces away from the strategic dam.

Neither the Hashd al-Shaabi, also known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and the Peshmerga have withdrawn from their positions.

The clashes are the latest escalation in tensions between the Iraqi Federal Government and the Kurdistan Region in the aftermath of the Sep. 25 referendum on independence.

Monday’s assault on the multi-ethnic city of Kirkuk, where both Iraqi forces and Iranian-backed Shia militia Hashd al-Shaabi took control of Kirkuk which had been under the protection of Peshmerga since mid-2014, was the first step in the Iraqi government imposing federal authority on the Kurdistan Region.

On Tuesday, Peshmerga Forces withdrew from disputed areas south of Erbil and in Sinjar (Shingal) as part of what is being described as an agreement between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the central government of Iraq, under the supervision of the US-led coalition, to return to pre-Mosul lines of defense.

The international coalition and community have called for the de-escalation of tensions and urged all parties to resolve their differences through dialogue, not military action.