Parliamentary power: Kurds did not provide a convincing justification for non-commitment to pay oil money

[6ly410]

Peshmerga Delegation to Visit Baghdad, Discuss Budget

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/514851

 Basnews English 16/04/2019 - 15:45 Published in Kurdistan

 

 

ERBIL — Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs will send a delegation to Baghdad next week for talks over the procedures of delivering Peshmerga’s budget designated by the Iraqi government.

“The Ministry of Peshmerga plans to send a representative from the Ministry’s General Directorate of Finances and Accounting to Baghdad next week in order to visit the Iraqi Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Financial Affairs and discuss the pipeline for the budget,” Peshmerga Ministry website quoted Jabbar Yawar, the secretary general of the ministry.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi has already approved Peshmerga’s share from the federal budget.

“The decided budget is 68 million IQD monthly, which translated to an annual budget of 816 billion IQD and will go effect since January of this year, Yawar detailed

[yota691]

Haddad to farmers of Kurdistan: We will work to pay your dues

Wednesday 17 April 2019 19

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Sabah

 

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Bishr Haddad work towards the payment of financial dues of the farmers of Kurdistan for the years 2015, 2016 and 2017.

A statement issued by his office, received «morning», a copy of it, «Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives received yesterday a delegation of peasants of Kurdistan, who demanded their legitimate and legal rights, while the ways were discussed to end their suffering, which has become burdensome». 

"We will work and demand the payment of your financial dues for the years 2015, 2016 and 2017, and we in the House of Representatives as the Presidency with the Kurdish blocs, we work as a team and intensify efforts and continue our contacts with the Ministries of Finance and Trade and the Council of Ministers to resolve this crisis, and despite the existence of controversies and differences prior to the session But we will not stop in the quest and work hard until the payment of dues to farmers ». "We must play our role in front of our people in Kurdistan and the rest of the provinces of Iraq, and this is a legal right to you and the relevant ministries should resolve the dilemma and take the financial and legal measures to release the dues that have been delayed for many years and affected a large number of farmers in the region."

Haddad also met with a delegation led by Prince Hussein Ali al-Hasnawi, Emir of the emirate of Bani Hassan and a number of elders and dignitaries.

[yota691]

Wise answer to Zebari: Implemented the agreement of 250 thousand barrels before defending the government of Abdul Mahdi

Political | 01:51 - 18/04/2019

 

 

 

Baghdad - Mawazin News 
Salah al-Arabawi, director of the office of the leader of the wisdom movement Ammar al-Hakim, on Thursday, the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and former finance minister Hoshyar Zebari. 
"To the former minister (Hoshyar Zebari), before you set yourself up as an attorney for the government of Abdul Mahdi, you have entered into an agreement with it and to enter 250 thousand barrels to the state treasury and not into pockets," Al-Arabawi said in a tweet on his personal account in Twitter. Parties ". 
Zebari had accused the Dawa party and the stream of wisdom of trying to topple the government of Adel Abdul Mahdi

[6ly410]

A committee from Kurdistan is visiting Baghdad to solve the problem of the disputed areas

Political | 08:36 - 18/04/2019

https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=43212

 

 

 

BAGHDAD 
 

(Reuters) - A parliamentary committee in the Kurdistan region said on Thursday it would visit the capital Baghdad to discuss the issue of Kirkuk and ways to normalize the situation in the disputed areas. 
"The committee will visit Baghdad soon and hold meetings with the relevant committees to discuss ways to activate the constitutional article 140 and normalize the situation in the Kurdish areas outside the administration of the region, especially the city of Kirkuk and its environs," said the head of the Kurdish Regions Committee outside the provincial administration. "He said.
"It is scheduled to hold a meeting with the Interim Committee for Article 140, which was formed in 2011, but its activities and activities have been suspended because of the political situation between Arbil and Baghdad, with the aim of activating them and resuming their activities. Kurdistan outside the administration of the region and address the remaining problems and differences between Arbil and Baghdad. " 
"The Baghdad expressed its readiness to address the remaining problems and normalization of the situation in those areas and cooperation and coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government to address all differences."
 

Edited April 18, 2019 by 6ly410

[ChuckFinley]

Well at least they are willing to talk.  

[Laid Back]

Just my opinion,

They cannot implement 140 till census is done.

Census will be in late 2020

 

 

[10 YEARS LATER]

I’ve lost track of how many years we’ve been reading this type of headline. Easy to see why Government jobs are so highly sought after. They form committees, to visit hither and yon to “ discuss “ whatever: forever ! 

 

.....and continue to collect a paycheck no matter how things turn out - or don’t.

[sq2]

I believe you are correct LB! Seems like a few years ago the census was a big deal that needed to happen to enact some laws that pertained to HCL and 140! 

[Laid Back]

22 minutes ago, sq2 said:

I believe you are correct LB! Seems like a few years ago the census was a big deal that needed to happen to enact some laws that pertained to HCL and 140! 

Thanks for your input sq2,

You’re correct👍🏼

Census is very important for HCL and 140 implementation.

[markb57]

RV 2021....maybe, or so it seems. no rv without hcl. no hcl without census. census late 2020. 

 

The problem with Iraq is anything can happen, ISIS, to change everything. This country is so unstable due to people not knowing how to run a govt.

 

I still hope for earlier rv. Just not seeing it. 

[yota691]

Kurdistan receives a signal from Baghdad on the conflict areas and Kirkuk and sends a delegation

 

  

 Twilight News    
 26 minutes ago

News / visit members of the Committee of the Parliament of Kurdistan, the capital Baghdad to discuss the issue of Kirkuk and ways to normalize the situation in areas of conflict. 
The Chairperson of the Committee of the Kurdish areas outside the region Joan management Roژbیana visit Baghdad will soon hold meetings with the relevant committees to discuss ways of activating the constitutional Article 140 and the normalization of the situation in the Kurdish areas outside the administration of the territory, especially Kirkuk and its suburbs , the city , "according to the Democratic Party site. 
She added , " As scheduled A meeting was held with the Interim Committee on Article 140, which was formed in 2011, but its activities and activities have been suspended because of the political situation between Holler and Baghdad, with the aim of activating them and resuming their activities. Kurdish areas outside the region manage and address the remaining problems and disputes between Erbil and Baghdad. "
She explained that "Baghdad expressed its readiness to address the remaining problems and normalization of the situation in those areas and cooperation and coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government to address all differences."

Keywords: 

[6ly410]

 

Kurds chant yes to co-existence, no to division in Kirkuk

By Rudaw 2 hours ago 

926Viewshttp://www.rudaw.net/mobile/english/kurdistan/190420193

         

Spokespeople protesting Arabization policies read a statement at a demonstration in Palkana village, Kirkuk province, on April 19, 2019. Photo: Rudaw video

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — “Yes to co-existence in Kirkuk, no to dividing its components,” read a protestor's poster in Palkana village west of Kirkuk city, a diverse area claimed by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and federal government of Iraq. 

Predominately-Kurdish protestors demonstrated in Palkana village near Sargaran town west of Kirkuk city on Friday to protest what they describe as another round of "Arabization."

"After October 16, in the year 2017, again the chauvinist Arabs with the backing of chauvinist individuals like the governor of Kirkuk returned to the villages to occupy the villages of this area and Arabizing it,” a Kurdish man read a statement aloud to a crowd and reporters.

They called on the Erbil, Baghdad, Iraqi President Barham Salih, who is a Kurd, and other Kurdistani politicians to resolve their issues based on Article 140 of the constitution that calls for the resolution of disputed areas by referendum.
 

During the presidency of deposed Baath regime leader Saddam Hussein, policies of Arabization were implemented in oil-rich Kirkuk. They resulted in Kurds being forced from their lands, and Arabs were resettled into their place.

The action of their lands being taken away “jeopardizes national peace," added the protestors' spokesperson, arguing that they won’t accept "injustice."

 

Anti-Arabization policy protesters gather in Palkana village in Kirkuk province on April 19, 2019. Photo: Rudaw video
 

RELATED: Iraqi court annuls Kirkuk governor’s ‘Arabization’ decrees

A second spokesperson added: People from Kirkuk haven’t asked for the “land and water” of anyone else and they only want to peacefully be on their lands.

Due to “constant Arabization and Baathification” their area hasn’t been fully rehabilitated, he further claimed.

Following the liberation in 2003, some Kurds returned to their lands believing they would play a greater role in governance of the "new Iraq." During the conflict with the Islamic State (ISIS), the KRG administered much of the oil-rich province. 

Peshmerga and Asayesh (Security) provided relative stability and cut off a possible supply of massive revenue for the extremists. 

The city has long been a stronghold of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) — the second largest party in the Kurdistan Region.

The spokesperson thanked veteran PUK commander Mahmoud Sangawi, who has promised the Kurdish farmers he would stand behind them and send armed forces in support.

Following the federal takeover of all disputed areas in October 2017, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) vowed not to return to the "occupied" city. The KDP is the largest party in the Kurdistan Region. 

Together, the KDP and PUK, comprise the Brotherhood Alliance on the Kirkuk Provincial Council where they control a majority of seats. However following the events of October 2017 which were widely seen as retaliaition for the Kurdistan Region holding an independence referendum that included some disputed areas, former Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi sacked Kirkuk Governor Najmaldin Karim of the PUK and replaced him with acting Governor Rakan Saeed al-Jabouri, a Sunni Arab politician.

Mohammed al-Halbousi, the speaker of Iraqi parliament, met with his regional counterparts on Thursday in Baghdad.
 

“Concerning Article 140, this is a disputed article. For example, let’s assume we talk about one of these cities, the city of Sinjar [or Shingal]. How can I think of including this city or the areas of Nineveh Plains, or areas in Diyala, Kirkuk and Saladin in the article while their residents haven’t returned so far?" Halbousi told reporters in a roundtable after the meetings.

 

Halbousi is a Sunni politician who was formerly the governor of Anbar province — one which suffered the most from the ISIS conflict and has tens of thousands of its people displaced in camps, according to the International Organization for Migration. More than 1.74 million Iraqis remain displaced.

 

"Based on Article 140 itself, the people of these areas determine their fate. Let me return the IDPs first to their areas and have stability for them to be able to move forward with this step, for them to determine their fate. Thus the parliament will undertake the legislative measures,” Halbousi added.

In last year's parliamentary election, the PUK peformed well in Kirkuk, winning 6 of 12 seats. Arab parties won 3, while Turkmen parties took 3. Another seat is reserved for Christians under the minority quota system.

Since the declared defeat of ISIS in December 2018, the Palakana village and surrounding areas have been a hotbedfor the group’s lingering and still deadly remnants. 

To the east and southeast in the KRG-administered Garmiyan, Asyesh have actively pursued ISIS remnants. 

[6ly410]

Kurdish Villagers Protest Arabization Campaign in Kirkuk

 

 BasNews   19/04/2019 - 19:45  Published inKurdistan

 

 

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/515497

 

ERBIL - A great number of Kurdish villagers gathered in the disputed province of Kirkuk on Friday to protest the arabization campaign in the area.

The Kurdish demonstrators in the Sargaran subdistrict of Kirkuk also condemned the "occupation" of their agricultural lands, calling on both the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the Iraqi government to resolve their disputes through peaceful dialogue, as reported by Kurdistan 24.

The Kurdish peasants in the area pointed out that the arabisation

campaign was launched after the Iraqi army and pro-Iranian Hashd al-Shaabi militias overran the region in 2017, stressing that they would not give up on their rights and that they will retake their lands.

The arabization was first launched by the former Iraqi regime of Baath led by Saddam al-Hussein in the 1970s and beyond where the regime brought hundreds of Arab families to the Kurdish areas to change the demography of the territories.

Edited April 19, 2019 by 6ly410

[6ly410]

Kurdistan

 

http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/

Kurds in disputed Kirkuk call for united electoral list in local Iraqi elections

Sangar Ali |

6 hours ago

 

---

A resident raisies the Kurdistan national flag on top of a vehicle. (Photo: RFE/RL/Nihad al-Bayati)

 

Kirkuk Elections Kurdistan Iraq Peshmerga Kurds

 

 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdish residents and parties in Iraq's disputed province of Kirkuk are calling for unity in the upcoming provincial elections as a means to secure top local posts.

Kirkuk, an ethnically diverse province comprised largely of Turkmen, Arabs, Christians, and a Kurdish majority, is claimed by both the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the federal government of Iraq.

Though national parliamentary elections have taken place in Kirkuk, the last local election was held in the province was in 2005. This has been caused largely by the inability of local officials from different ethnicities to agree on a mechanism for holding a local poll.

Last year, the Iraqi Council of Ministers decided to hold provincial elections across the nation, including in Kirkuk province, on December 22. The vote, however, was delayed until an undetermined date due to lack of a budget dedicated to the electoral commission and the short period set for the electoral body to make preparations.

Earlier this month, Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) proposed that the federal government hold provincial elections in the country on November 16, which would be the first local vote in Kirkuk in the past 14 years.

The Brotherhood bloc, made of all the components of the Kurdish majority, currently dominate most of the seats in the 41-member Kirkuk Provincial Council (KPC).

Since October 2017, though, Kurds become powerless in the oil-rich province, with Kurdish Governor Najmaldin Karim being ousted from his post and with the KPC failing to convene or make any decisions.

On Oct. 16, 2017, Iraqi forces and Shia militias attacked and took over Kirkuk and other disputed territories in response to the Kurdistan Region's independence referendum, held the month before. Kurdish Peshmerga fighters withdrew from those areas, avoiding major clashes to strengthen their lines in the Kurdistan Region. Tens of thousands of people were displaced in the oil-rich and ethnically diverse province, most of them Kurdish.

Since then, Kirkuk and other disputed territories have witnessed instability and an increasing number of insurgent attacks by Islamic State militants and other unknown gunmen.

“We think two important things need to be done in Kirkuk,” Shakhawan Abdullah, a former Kurdish lawmaker of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in the Iraqi Parliament, told Kurdistan 24 on Friday.

“First, the situation in Kirkuk should be normalized, security and military-wise,” he said. ”Second, Kurdish parties should unite in the provincial elections by having one electoral list in Kirkuk.” 

Jwan Hassan, a Kurdish member of the KPC from the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) party, warns that Kurds will be the big loser in Kirkuk should they fail to participate in the upcoming election under one united electoral list.

“If we fail to unite in the elections, we will lose thousands of votes and will eventually decrease the number of seats we can secure in the KPC,” Hassan told Kurdistan 24 on Friday.

After the emergence of the Islamic State in Iraq in June 2014, Iraqi forces failed to defend Kirkuk and eventually abandoned the area before the Peshmerga forces and Kurdish security assembled to protect Kirkuk from Islamic State attacks.

Following the formation of the new Iraqi federal government headed by Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi in October, Kurdish leaders had been in constant talks with Baghdad to resolve differences related to the disputed territories, including the return of the Peshmerga and Kurdish security to those areas.

[6ly410]

Saturday، 20 April 2019 04:10 PM

Kurds call for united electoral list in local Iraqi elections in Kirkuk

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/38611/Kurds-call-for-united-electoral-list-in-local-Iraqi-elections-in-Kirkuk

 

Kurdish residents and parties in Kikuk have called for unity in the upcoming provincial elections as a means to secure top local posts, according to news reports.

“We think two important things need to be done in Kirkuk,” Shakhawan Abdullah, a former Kurdish lawmaker of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in the Iraqi Parliament, said in remarks on Friday.

“First, the situation in Kirkuk should be normalized, security and military-wise,” he said. ”Second, Kurdish parties should unite in the provincial elections by having one electoral list in Kirkuk.”

Meanwhile, Jwan Hassan, a Kurdish member of the KPC from the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) party, warned that Kurds will be the big loser in Kirkuk should they fail to participate in the upcoming election under one united electoral list.

“If we fail to unite in the elections, we will lose thousands of votes and will eventually decrease the number of seats we can secure in the KPC,” Hassan said.

[6ly410]

Iraqi Parliament Forms "National Peace" Committee in Tuz Khurmatu

 

BasNews 20/04/2019 - 23:57 Published in Kurdistan

 

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/515735

 

 

ERBIL - Iraqi Council of Representatives has formed a special committee to establish "national peace" among the Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmens in the disputed town of Tuz Khurmatu, an official confirmed.

Talking to BasNews, Sardar Ahmed, a member of the Tuz Khurmatu Mayoral Council, said that the committee had visited the area and met with representatives from the three different components.

"The three components have agreed on a 15-point method to establish the national peace and the 15 points would be send to the Council of Representatives to be voted on," Ahmed noted.

"We as Kurds, have called for the compensation of the people from the three components who were affected by the October 16 events and all the wars [against the Islamic State] in the years of 2015 and 2016."

He further pointed out that the Kurds also called for equality in employment among the three nations.

On October 16, 2017, the Iraqi army and pro-Iranian Hashd al-Shaabi overran the disputed Kurdish territories and forced the Peshmerga forces out of the areas.

 

 

 

 

[yota691]

The Presidency of the Parliament appealed to Kurdistan to abide by the budget items, including with regard to the export of oil

Political | 01:51 - 21/04/2019

 

 

 

BAGHDAD - Mawazine News The 
Presidency of the Parliament, on Sunday, appealed to the Kurdistan region, which invited him to abide by the provisions of the general budget for the year 2019, especially with regard to the export of oil. 
"The Ka'abi received in his office today, Mona Kahwaji, the second deputy speaker of the Parliament of the Kurdistan region and the accompanying parliamentary delegation after their active participation in the activities of the Baghdad Summit of Parliaments of neighboring countries of Iraq," the Information Office of the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament, Hassan al-Kaabi, said in a statement received " . 
He said al-Kaabi, according to the statement, "The participation of the parliament of the region reflected the image of Iraq's real unity not to the neighboring countries participating in the summit, but to the whole world," adding that "
He stressed that "the previous period has seen the impact of some external forces and non-neutral media on the nature of the relationship between the center and the region as it aims to create an unstable Iraq security and political programs to carry out freely," he said: "But we will establish a new relationship based on the rejection of the acrid voices that work Full strength to destabilize the trust between the parties and create crises and distance the parties from the language of constructive dialogue. " 
On the oil file, al-Kaabi pointed out, "the necessity of the commitment of the region in agreement with the Government of the Center with regard to the export of oil, as well as budget items and all the files that were called the outstanding files, but files can be resolved if it came through dialogue between the parties in a positive and away from the language of narrow interests The ultimate goal is to serve the Iraqi people with all its components. "
For its part, expressed Kahwaji, "the Presidency of the Federal Council of Representatives to involve the Parliament of the region within the activities of the Parliaments of neighboring countries of Iraq, which had a positive impact with the representatives of parliament and the government and citizens of the region who began to restore confidence in their Iraqi identity, especially after the great national position when approving the budget Iraq, 2019, which approved the service of the Iraqi people as a whole without regard to sub-names such as the component and the region and the national and others, "asserting that" this counts for all supporters of the endeavor to build a strong and coherent Iraq capable of building and progress in the service of the Iraqi people. "

[6ly410]

1 hour ago, yota691 said:

The participation of the parliament of the region reflected the image of Iraq's real unity not to the neighboring countries participating in the summit, but to the whole world," adding that "

 

[6ly410]

Iraq Dismisses Another Kurdish Official in Kirkuk

 

Basnews English 21/04/2019 - 15:33 Published in Kurdistan

 

 

http://www.basnews.com/index.php/en/news/kurdistan/515870

 

ERBIL — Authorities ordered the dismissal of another Kurdish official in the disputed province of Kirkuk.

According to the information obtained by BasNews, Jihan Ibrahim, manager of Kirkuk acting directorate of water and sewage is replaced by a new figure.

A Shi’ite Turkmen has been appointed to the position after Ibrahim was sacked without a prior notice.

Fuad Kwekha, member of Kirkuk provincial council, decried the decision and said they first heard about it from the media reports.

He explained that the decision was another attempt to limit the role of Kurds in the local administration.

“We have already notified the Iraqi government to halt administrative alteration until the situation in Kirkuk is normalized, but our call remains with no response,” Kwekha said.

Since the Iraqi government has taken over Kirkuk, more than 200 Kurdish officials in different ranks have so far been replaced. The Kurds, who make up the majority in the province, call for a joint rule between Erbil and Baghdad in Kirkuk to address the prolonged crisis.

[6ly410]

Peshmerga return to Kirkuk ‘intrinsic’ to defeating ISIS remnants: analyst 

By Paul Iddon 9 minutes ago 

134Views

         http://www.rudaw.net/mobile/english/analysis/21042019

An Iraqi soldier removes a Kurdish flag from Altun Kupri, 25 miles north of Kirkuk city. File photo: Emad Matti / AP 

Iraq launched its latest military offensive this April against Islamic State (ISIS) remnants in the Hamrin Mountains, which span the northern provinces of Diyala and Kirkuk. As with past offensives, a decisive victory over ISIS is highly unlikely as Baghdad fails to provide basic governance and security during the night – shortcomings shrewdly exploited by the jihadists. 

Coupled with the group’s return to its earlier insurgency tactics, following the destruction of its so-called caliphate, Iraqi forces are struggling to locate and neutralize militants in these areas. 

Dr Dylan O’Driscoll, a researcher in the Peace and Development Programme at Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), recently published an analysisoutlining the challenges Iraq faces in securing and stabilizing the region. 

ISIS militants “are currently focused on targeted assassinations of tribal and village leaders seen as cooperating with the government and key Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) personnel, as well as attacks against checkpoints just outside of its zone of operations,” the analysis notes. 

O’Driscoll also points out that ISIS can operate almost completely unhindered at night, as neither the ISF nor any other government force appears willing to leave its base after dark. This enables ISIS to undertake criminal activities to finance its operations, which “weakens the local faith in the central government’s capacity to provide security.”

Reestablishing coordination between the ISF and the Kurdish Peshmerga, which fell apart when Iraq used military force against the Kurds to capture Kirkuk in October 2017, together with restoring a local Sunni-led security force in this wider region, are key to decisively combating this ISIS threat, he argues.  

Since the events of October 2017, major security gaps have opened up between the ISF and Peshmerga front lines, leading to an absence of real trust and coordination between them. This relieved pressure on ISIS in these key areas. 

As recently as April 14, ISIS released a 21-minute video in which militants appeared to execute village chiefs and Sunni tribal fighters. The video also featured footage of an explosives workshop and recent fighting with Iraqi forces.

If security coordination is reestablished, Baghdad will then need to take steps to reverse the damage ISIS has afflicted “through rebuilding, repopulating and providing services in these spaces – essentially introducing genuine state involvement and support to these areas,” O'Driscoll adds. 

Speaking to Rudaw English, O'Driscoll stressed the necessity of bringing the Peshmerga back to Kirkuk. 

“I think a deal between the Erbil and Baghdad needs to be made for the return of the shared security arrangement in Kirkuk,” he said. 

“The current situation is not in the long-term benefit of Kirkukis. However, this is complicated by the current PUK/KDP relations,” said O'Driscoll, referring to the Kurdistan Region’s two main parties.

“In order to negotiate on Kirkuk, the Kurds first have to have a unified stance and this involves agreeing on the division of government positions first,” he added, in reference to ongoing government formation talks. 

The Kurds also might have less incentive to work with the ISF if US President Donald Trump cuts America’s defense budget contribution to the Peshmerga from $290 million per year to $126 million in October.  

The aim of this US military assistance to the Peshmerga is to outfit their brigades “with ammunition, vehicles and anti-tank weapons to get them in line with US military standards so they can conduct joint patrols with the Iraqi Security Forces.” 

However, with the prospect of a major budget cut, this could prove much easier said than done. 

As Al-Monitor recently noted, the Ministry of Peshmerga will have an even harder time bringing together different Peshmerga forces to work with the ISF in Kirkuk if its budget is significantly reduced. 

That being said, Baghdad has been approving budget payments to the Kurdistan Region since relations began to thaw with Erbil, including Peshmerga salaries. This signals a return to the pre-2014 status quo when Baghdad provided the Kurdistan Region with its constitutional share of the federal budget. Over time, this could foster much-needed cooperation in Kirkuk and other legally disputed territories against a common adversary. 

“With regards to salary cutting, I see this as all part of negotiations and if the Peshmerga are providing security in Kirkuk and beyond then salaries can once again be negotiated,” O'Driscoll said. 

“The negotiations for the Peshmerga to return to Kirkuk will have to cover a range of issues, including the governorship, salaries, command structures, and collaboration.”

More broadly, O'Driscoll sees renewed coordination between the ISF and the Peshmerga in Kirkuk on both security and governance as “intrinsic for the province’s future.”

“One group trying to take full control of the province does nothing to solve the underlying issues and it is always the people that suffer,” he said. 

“Like Basra, Kirkuk is a rich province and it is important that there is a focus on the economic and social development of the province.”

 

 

[yota691]

Al-Kaabi and Haddad emphasize the importance of coordination between the two parliaments «Federal» and {region »

Sunday 21 April 2019 30

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Sabah

 

The First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Hassan Karim al-Kaabi and Vice-President Bashir Haddad, the importance of high coordination between the Federal Council of Representatives and the Parliament of the region, which contribute to enhance confidence and provide a true picture of one Iraq.

"The first deputy speaker of the House of Representatives received in his office on Sunday, Mrs. Mona Kahwaji, the second deputy speaker of the Kurdistan Regional Parliament and the accompanying parliamentary delegation after their active participation in the activities of the Baghdad Summit of Parliaments of neighboring countries of Iraq."

The statement quoted al-Kaabi as saying: "The participation of the parliament of the region reflected the image of the real unity of Iraq not in front of the neighboring countries participating in the summit, but in front of the whole world, although this participation is the first but not the last but will be the beginning of high-level coordination between the Federal Parliament and the Parliament of the province, That is the right situation that must be the large Iraq that embraces everyone and be strong diversity and all components. "

Al-Kaabi stressed that "the previous period has seen the influence of some external forces and non-neutral media in the nature of the relationship between the center and the region as it aims to create an unstable security and political Iraq to implement its programs freely, but we will establish a new relationship based on the rejection of the acrid voices that work with full force to destabilize confidence On the other hand, Mrs. Kahwaji expressed her gratitude to the Presidency of the Federal Council of Representatives to involve the Parliament of the Territory within the activities of the Parliaments of neighboring countries of Iraq, "which has had a positive impact on the representatives of parliament, government and citizens of the region Who began to restore confidence in their Iraqi identity, especially after the great national position when the adoption of the budget of Iraq for the year 2019, which approved the service of the Iraqi people as a whole without regard to sub-names such as the component and regional and national and other, "asserting that" This counts for all supporters of the endeavor to build a strong and coherent Iraq capable of Construction and progress to serve the Iraqi people. "

On the oil file, Al-Kaabi stressed the "need to commit the region in agreement with the Government of the Center in relation to the export of oil, as well as budget items and all the files that were called the outstanding files," stressing that "they are solvable files if they came through dialogue between the parties positively Far from the language of narrow interests, the ultimate goal is to serve the Iraqi people in all its components. "

Also received the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Bashir Haddad in his office yesterday, the Kurdish parliamentary delegation headed by Ms. Kahwaji, and included a delegation of deputies of various blocs in the Parliament of the region, and during the meeting discussed ways of coordination and cooperation. 

"Haddad told the delegation that he was happy to visit," Haddad pointed out, "the need to strengthen cooperation and coordination between the Council of Representatives and the Parliament of the region to resolve all the problems and outstanding issues between the region and Baghdad, and the participation of the parliamentary delegation to the region at the Baghdad Summit of the heads of parliaments of neighboring countries of Iraq Is a positive message towards joint action. "

For their part, the delegation expressed its happiness for the good reception and fruitful meeting and to participate in the Baghdad summit, and also stressed the continuation of relations and strengthening them to serve our country and our people.

[yota691]

Rehabilitation of dozens of schools of petrodollar allocations in Kirkuk

Sunday 21 April 2019 37

 

 

Kirkuk / Nahdet Ali 

The Directorate of Education of Kirkuk prepared a plan to rehabilitate dozens of schools in different areas of petrodollar allotments, while the province is witnessing the implementation of a media campaign to attract the largest number of illiterate females and males in the liberated areas of gangs.

The assistant director of education Kirkuk Abdul Salam Samad told «morning»: The Directorate prepared a project plan within the petrodollar allocations and at the request of specialists in the province, noting that their plan includes the rehabilitation of 75 schools that need to be renovated and construction in Kirkuk to provide educational services for students , Noting that the next year will see the dismantling of many double duality tripartite and double in one school after the completion of buildings under construction, pointing to the completion of six schools by the company «Heller» Italian out of 13, while the remaining are in the process of completion and there are 30 schools are also included renovations , He added The existence of a government plan for the construction of new buildings, the province has paid attention to the said aspect. 

He pointed out that the Directorate stepped up its work recently, especially in the first semester to end the file of school dropouts and in cooperation with international organizations, revealing the return of thousands of students, especially in the liberated areas of the gangs "da'ash" terrorist after forcing most to leave school, Poverty and other conditions were squeezed and most of them were attracted to accelerated education through the opening of three centers in the south and southwest of the province at the age of 16 years.

Samad added that the Directorate is preparing for the final examinations of the unfinished classrooms and the formation of special committees in order to finish all the preparations in terms of preparing questions and control tables and preparing the examination halls and determining the rates of students before the exam, pointing out that it was delayed in the implementation of the order to transfer the educational owners to the liberated areas, In the current period, pointing out that the full implementation of the above mentioned will be at the beginning of the next academic year.

On the other hand, the director of the Department of Literacy in Kirkuk, Qais Abdul Mohammed told us: The department intends to launch a media campaign in preparation for the next school year to attract the largest number of illiterate women and men to eliminate illiteracy and eliminate them, especially in areas liberated from control He said that they have opened a large number of centers, including employees of state departments and institutions for service and craftsmen. 

Mohammed said that the department is currently preparing for the final exams for primary school for the current academic year, stressing that he has approached the ministry in order to allow sixth grade students to take their exams in nearby areas, especially the students of the districts and areas that are far from the center of the city as it will unite the center of exam in one place As directed. 

[yota691]

Finance announces the sending of salaries for four months to employees of the Kurdistan region

 

money and business Economy News _ Baghdad Finance Minister Fouad Hussein announced on Monday that the federal government will send four months' salaries to employees in the Kurdistan region. Hussein said in an interview with Radio "Voice of America" and his "Economic News" , "  The salaries of four months was sent in full to employees of the Kurdistan region," pledging "to commit to send salaries on time." He added that "in the coming days will be sent 68 billion dinars salaries for four months to the Ministry of Peshmerga." Views 81   Date Added 22/04/2019

[cutter73]

6 minutes ago, yota691 said:

Finance announces the sending of salaries for four months to employees of the Kurdistan region

 

money and business Economy News _ Baghdad Finance Minister Fouad Hussein announced on Monday that the federal government will send four months' salaries to employees in the Kurdistan region. Hussein said in an interview with Radio "Voice of America" and his "Economic News" , "  The salaries of four months was sent in full to employees of the Kurdistan region," pledging "to commit to send salaries on time." He added that "in the coming days will be sent 68 billion dinars salaries for four months to the Ministry of Peshmerga." Views 81   Date Added 22/04/201

I wish they'd hurry up so I could have my salary/retirement... 

[yota691]

Iraqi government: We have sent four months' salaries to Kurdistan

 

 Twilight News    
 3 hours ago

Iraqi Finance Minister Fuad Hussein said on Monday that the federal government has laid the salaries of four months to employees in the province of Kurdistan.

Hussein said in a statement to Radio "Voice of America" that the salaries of four months was sent full to the Kurdistan region, pledging to commit to send salaries on time.

He noted that in the coming days, 68 billion dinars will be sent salaries for four months to the Ministry of Peshmerga.

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