Iraqi parliament decides to remove Kurdistan flag in Kirkuk

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Kurdistan24) – The Parliament of Iraq on Saturday decided to bring down the flag of Kurdistan on all governmental buildings in the Kirkuk Province, according to a Kurdistan24 correspondent.

The Iraqi Parliament held a session on several topics, and the Kurdistan flag in Kirkuk was one of them.

In the meeting, the assembly agreed to remove the Kurdish flag on all Kirkuk state buildings, reversing the decision recently approved by the Kirkuk Provincial Council (KPC).

Moreover, the Iraqi government stressed only the flag of Iraq should be lifted on state buildings in the province.

The approved draft resolution by the Iraqi Parliament was requested by Kirkuk Turkmen who were against raising the Kurdistan flag.

“Confrontation took place between Kurdish members of parliament and the speaker, and Kurds later left the session,” Kurdistan24 correspondent Awat Khairullah said.

He also mentioned the parliament decided the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) should no longer be involved in Kirkuk oil affairs.

On March 28, the KPC approved the raising of the Kurdistan flag on all governmental buildings in the province after a majority vote.

Turkmen and Arab members of the council boycotted the session after Kirkuk Governor Najmaldin Karim rejected their request to postpone the meeting for the following week.

Kirkuk is an oil-rich province located in the south of the Kurdistan Region and north of Iraq.

Although Kurds make up a majority of the population, Kirkuk is a diverse area with different ethnic and religious backgrounds including Turkmen, Arabs, and Christians.

Additionally, the province is one of the disputed territories between the federal government of Iraq and the KRG.

Following the KPC’s approval, the President of the Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani released a statement declaring the move was legal.

“It was the same flag that protected Kirkuk from the threat and attacks of terrorists,” Barzani stated.

Amin Mohammed, a Kurdish member of the Iraqi Parliament, spoke to Kurdistan24 about the recent decision.

“It is the Federal Judicial Authority in Iraq who decides in such cases, not the Parliament of Iraq,” Amin explained.

“The decision will not be enacted, I assure you,” he added.

Ashwaq Jaff, another Kurdish MP in the Iraqi Parliament, called on the Kurdish parties to form a united voice and increase their influence in Baghdad.

“We Kurds have to wake up,” Jaff stated. “What are we doing here in Baghdad while we can't secure the rights of Peshmerga and the people of the Kurdistan Region?”

Moreover, he called on the Kurdish leadership to hold a referendum for self-determination in the earliest future.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany