KRG officials, workers to return to Makhmour after five months away: Mayor

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) directors and employees will return to the town of Makhmour on Sunday to resume thier administrative responsibilities after five months away, a Kurdish official said on Saturday.

KRG employees left the town and moved to Erbil following the October military takeover of disputed territories, including Kirkuk Province and Makhmour, by Iraqi forces and Iran-backed Shia Hashd al-Shaabi (PMF) militias.

“On Sunday, employees of the KRG will return to Makhmour and resume their governmental duties,” Makhmour Mayor Rizgar Mohammed told Kurdistan 24.

“From tomorrow on, people of the town can visit KRG offices in Makhmour to procure documents or to resolve other issues,” Mohammed said.

On Monday, security forces from Iraq's federal government officially re-opened the main road between Makhmour and Erbil after five months of closure. A month earlier, the road was re-opened by the KRG, but the move was unilateral and travel remained blocked from the other side.

On Sunday, all KRG employees working for the city's administration will return to Makhmour and resume work as they had pre-October, with the notable exception of Peshmerga and Kurdish Asayish security forces, according to a Kurdistan 24 correspondent.

Makhmour, 60-kilometers southwest of Erbil, is a disputed territory populated by Kurds and Arabs. It is claimed by both the KRG and the federal government of Iraq. Officially, it is part of Nineveh Province but has been administrated by the Kurdistan Region over the past decade.

Editing by John J. Catherine