Baghdad Ignores Irbil Initiative, PMF Rejects it

Kurdish people celebrate to show their support for the independence referendum in Erbil, Iraq September 8, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
Kurdish people celebrate to show their support for the independence referendum in Erbil, Iraq September 8, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
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Baghdad Ignores Irbil Initiative, PMF Rejects it

Kurdish people celebrate to show their support for the independence referendum in Erbil, Iraq September 8, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
Kurdish people celebrate to show their support for the independence referendum in Erbil, Iraq September 8, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) offered to freeze the results of the Kurdish independence referendum to give open dialogue a chance with Baghdad. However, authorities in Baghdad ignored the offer and didn't issue any official response and Shiite forces rejected it.

The Kurdish government issued a statement on Wednesday stating that it does not want war and bloodshed to continue between Kurdish and Iraqi forces. They have therefore offered to “freeze the outcome of the referendum that was held in Iraqi Kurdistan.”

It also said that they will immediately announce a ceasefire and stop every military operation in the Kurdistan Region.

"We offer to begin an open dialogue between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the federal government on the basis of the Iraqi constitution," KRG's statement said.

Iraqi Army spokesperson stated that military operations are not linked to politics, hinting that the campaign in disputed areas to retrieve it from Kurds will continue.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has said the referendum was illegal and had previously demanded that the result be annulled, amid support from Shiite MPs.

Observers expect Abadi to maintain his demands to annul the referendum and its results and not just freeze it. Abadi didn't refer to the Kurdish initiative during his visit to Turkey when he stated that Baghdad will maintain the federal authority, adding: “it is my duty to preserve Iraq’s unity, sovereignty, and protect its wealth.”

MP of Dawa Party Jassim Mohammed Jaafar stated that the PM had previously rejected freezing the referendum and demanded its annulment. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that freezing is an implicit recognition of the referendum.

“Freezing the referendum is a wordplay and scheme from the Kurdish government and its President. They should admit to their losses and announce annulment of the referendum and its results,” he added.

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said on Wednesday that the initiative of the Kurdistan government to “freeze” the results of the referendum on the independence of the region “has no value,” stressing that the central government should “annul” the results of this vote.

“The initiative is worthless because the freeze means recognizing the referendum, and the government's request is clear, to cancel the referendum,” PMF spokesman Ahmed al-Asadi told AFP.

Sadeqoon movement, affiliated with League of Righteous People, rejected the “separatist project” led by Kurdish President Barzani.

The movement’s spokesperson Laith al-Azari announced rejection of attempts to pass a plot to divide the country and grant the secessionist project led by Barzani a chance.

Azari added that freezing the referendum is an admission to violating the law and Iraqi constitution.

Shiite political forces are adamant to gain as much as possible of concessions and gains from Kurdistan while it is “weak and within its current crisis”.

Observers believe Shiite forces are trying to amend former comprises given to Kurdistan that harmed Iraq including Article 140 of the Constitution the deals with Kirkuk and disputed areas.

In addition, parliamentary bloc al-Fadila asked Kurdistan to handover all Peshmerga members who apprehended members of the Federal Forces during Makhmour operations.

Head of the bloc, Ammar Taame called for the arrest of the “criminal group” of Peshmerga forces that committed the crime and killed a number of soldiers. He warned Kurdish political leadership of the consequences of such actions.



Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Forces Kill 18

A Palestinian mourns a relative killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in northern Gaza - AFP
A Palestinian mourns a relative killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in northern Gaza - AFP
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Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Forces Kill 18

A Palestinian mourns a relative killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in northern Gaza - AFP
A Palestinian mourns a relative killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in northern Gaza - AFP

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli forces killed 18 people on Friday, including 10 who were waiting for aid in the south of the war-ravaged territory.

The fresh deaths came as the United Nations said nearly 800 people had been killed trying to access food in Gaza since late May, when Israel began easing a more than two-month total blockade on supplies.

UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said most of the deaths occurred near facilities operated by the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, AFP reported.

"We've recorded now 798 killings, including 615 in the vicinity of the GHF sites," from the time the group's operations began in late May until July 7, Shamdasani said Friday.

An officially private effort, GHF operations have been marred by chaotic scenes and frequent reports of Israeli forces firing on people waiting to collect rations.

The UN and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the foundation over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives and violates basic humanitarian principles.

Responding to the UN's figures, Israel's military said it had worked to minimize "possible friction between the population and the army forces as much as possible".

"Following incidents in which harm to civilians who arrived at distribution facilities was reported, thorough examinations were conducted... and instructions were issued to forces in the field following lessons learned," it added.

Gaza civil defense official Mohammed al-Mughayyir said that 10 people were shot by Israeli forces on Friday while waiting for supplies in the Al-Shakoush area northwest of Rafah, where there are regular reports of deadly fire on aid seekers.

- 'Extremely difficult' -

The civil defense reported six more people killed in four separate Israeli airstrikes in the area of Khan Yunis, in the south of the territory.

Two drone strikes around Gaza City in the north killed two more people, civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

There was no immediate comment on the latest strikes from the Israeli military, which has recently expanded its operations across Gaza.

Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defense agency and other parties.

A Palestinian speaking to AFP from southern Gaza on condition of anonymity reported ongoing attacks and widespread devastation, with Israeli tanks seen near Khan Yunis.

"The situation remains extremely difficult in the area -- intense gunfire, intermittent airstrikes, artillery shelling, and ongoing bulldozing and destruction of displacement camps and agricultural land to the south, west and north of Al-Maslakh," an area to Khan Yunis's south, said the witness.

Israel's military said in a statement that its soldiers were operating in the area, dismantling "terrorist infrastructure sites, both above and below ground", and seizing "weapons and military equipment".

The civil defense also reported on Friday five people killed in an Israeli strike the previous night on a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in Jabalia al-Nazla, in northern Gaza.

Nearly all of Gaza's population has been displaced at least once during the more than 21-month war, which has created dire humanitarian conditions for the more than two million people living there.

Many have sought shelter in school buildings, but these have repeatedly come under Israeli attack, with the military often saying they were targeting Hamas militants hiding among civilians.