Iraqi soldier wounded in attack at anti-Turkish demonstration in disputed Sinjar

Mustafa Shilani 2021/12/12 18:39

A still from a video circulated on social media that purports to show an attack against Iraqi security forces in Sinjar. (Photo: Social Media)

Iraq Iraq Kurdistan Sinjar PKK Iraqi Army

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Violent clashes erupted between Iraqi military forces and groups affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the disputed district of Sinjar (Shingal) on Sunday.

The military press office known as the Iraqi Security Media Cell said in a statement that one of their soldiers was wounded in a "shooting incident and by Molotov bombs [thrown] at a Humvee."

It added that security forces had opened an investigation into the incident, which took place in the town of Senoni, "as the Iraqi army was securing the protection of demonstrators condemning the Turkish aggression on Iraqi territory."

The tension in the area had recently increased considerably after local authorities affiliated to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) effectively brought the work of government departments to a halt by pressuring them into leaving work in protest of a recent Turkish bombing of the town.

On Thursday, a Kurdistan Region official stressed “the need to overcome political and administrative obstacles that prevent justice for the victims' families, and accelerate the formation of the administration in Sinjar, enhancing security and stability and providing material aid and basic services for their return from displacement camps to their indigenous homeland.”

These were precisely the goals when the federal government in Baghdad and the KRG signed the Sinjar Agreement in Oct. 2020.

Over a year later, the agreement remains unimplemented, most seriously regarding its security provisions since multiple armed militias continue to operate there, making further meaningful progress almost impossible.

Sunday's statement concluded by stating that army forces were able to "disperse the demonstration peacefully and began collecting information and evidence to find out who caused the shooting incident."