Iraqi MP calls PKK to open office in Baghdad

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – A member of Iraqi parliament on Thursday asked the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to open an office in the capital of Iraq, Baghdad.

In a statement, Awatif Na’ima, an Iraqi MP, asked the PKK to open their representative offices in Baghdad and other provinces in Iraq.

Na’ima is part of the list of the State of Law Coalition led by the former Iraqi prime minister and current Iraqi Vice-President Nouri al-Maliki.

The MP’s statement comes after the recent tension between Turkish and Iraqi officials regarding the stationing of Turkish troops in the camp of Bashik, located in northern Mosul.

“PKK fights Da’esh, a terrorist organization backed by the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” the MP said, using the Arabic term for the Islamic State (IS).

“PKK is not a threat to the security of Iraq at all,” he added.

The PKK is labeled a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union, and the United States.

The group has waged three decades of insurgency against the Turkish government in the past.

The MP’s statement aimed to pressure Ankara to withdraw its forces on the outskirts of Mosul as the Iraqi security, Kurdish Peshmerga forces, and the US-led coalition is preparing to launch a military operation against IS in the city.

Moreover, she called on the international community to act against Turkey, stating Ankara had violated the sovereignty of Iraq.

Recently, the Prime Minister of Iraq Haider al-Abadi asked Ankara to pull its troops from the country.

However, Erdogan harshly responded and stated Turkey would “do whatever they want to do” in Mosul.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany