Kurdistan Parliament to discuss Shia militia attacks, rescheduling of elections

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Parliament will convene this week to discuss the latest developments in the region, according to a Kurdish lawmaker.

“Parliament will address the recent attacks carried out by the Iranian-backed Shia Hashd al-Shaabi militia and Iraqi Forces in the disputed territories,” Omed Khoshnaw, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) faction in the parliament told Kurdistan 24. 

“We will also discuss elections in the Kurdistan Region.”

Ties between Erbil and Baghdad have considerably deteriorated following the Sep. 25 vote on independence for the Kurdistan Region.

The Hashd al-Shaabi, also known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and Iraqi troops on Oct. 16 mobilized on the city of Kirkuk and took control of local administrative offices after the Iraqi Government repeatedly threatened the Kurdish administration to reverse the results of the referendum.

After the fall of Kirkuk on Oct. 16, the PMF and Iraqi Forces set their sights on the town of Pirde, also known as Altun Kupri, and launched an assault on Friday, some 40 kilometers south of Erbil city.

The Kurdistan Region was scheduled to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on November 1, but a recent decision by the Independent High Electoral and Referendum Commission (IHERC) delayed the event.  

The elections committee halted preparations citing the “lack of candidates registered within the period set by IHERC,” and the ongoing security crisis in the region.

The IHERC said it would wait on the Kurdistan Regional Parliament to set a new date for the elections in a statement issued on Oct. 18.

Editing by G.H. Renaud