Exclusive - Arabs in Kirkuk Refuse Peshmerga Return

Arab forces in Kirkuk have expressed their rejection to the return of Kurdish Peshmerga and Asayish forces to the oil-rich province and other disputes regions.

They called on the Kurdish and Iraqi forces that were victorious in the May parliamentary elections against dragging Kikruk into their political negotiations that are aimed at forming the largest bloc at the legislature.

Spokesman of the Arab Council in Kirkuk Hatem al-Taei stressed that it opposes the return of the Peshmerga.

The council represents the vast majority of the Arab political and social forces in the province.

Taei told Asharq Al-Awsat that the legal explanation of the “disputed regions” means that only federal forces are allowed to deploy there.

These forces bring together all components of society without exception, he stressed.

“Our problem, as Arabs in Kirkuk, does not lie with the Kurds or Kurdish political forces, but with the powers that control the security and military forces that have seized Kirkuk,” he added.

“We suffered under the rule of these forces throughout the duration of the war against ISIS,” he revealed. “They committed many many violations against our regions and their Arab residents.”

He accused the Kurdish forces of arresting the youth and destroying 116 Arab villages in Kirkuk without any justified reason simply because they “lie within the borders of regions the forces wanted to claim as their own through bloodshed.”

“It would be difficult to predict the Arab reaction in Kirkuk should the return of the Kurdish forces be allowed there. The Arabs are very bitter about the past experience,” he warned.

The Turkmen forces in Kirkuk also appeared reluctant to accept the return of the Peshmerga.

Spokesman for the Turkmen Decision Party Mahdi Bozok told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Turkmen will accept the Kurdish forces’ return only if they are controlled by the federal authorities, meaning they should receive direct orders from the Iraqi government.

He called for reconciliation between all segments of Kirkuk society and that the Turkmen be included in negotiations over the fate of the province.

“There can be no stability in Kirkuk without the Turkmen,” he declared.

The management of the province must take place between all forces that are present there, he stressed.

The Peshmerge are part of the Iraqi defense system and the constitution stipulates that such a system is exclusively subject to the federal authorities, he went on to say.

On the other side of the divide, Kurdish parties voiced their rejection of the Arab and Turkmen stances on the Peshmerga, dismissing them as political statements aimed at achieving political gains at the expense of the province.

None of their claims have constitutional or legal bases, they added.

Leading member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Khaled Shwani accused the Arab and Turkmen powers of putting their interests above those of the residents of Kirkuk.

He cited the Iraqi constitution that stipulates that the security of regions that are disputed between Baghdad and Erbil be jointly controlled by federal and Peshmerga forces.

The constitution says that the federal forces must include all members of society, he stated.

The current forces deployed in Kirkuk only represent one segment of the local society, which is why the Peshmerga must take part in security duties there, he added.

Moein Abu Odeh clambered up a pile of rubble in southern Gaza, searching for clothes, shoes, anything he could sell to raise cash more than a year since Israel started its relentless bombardments.

The father-of-four delved under blocks and brushed away piles of concrete dust at the site of one airstrike in the wrecked city of Khan Younis. His plan was to sell what he found to buy flour.

"If food and drink were available, believe me, I would give (these clothes) to charity," he said. "But the struggles we are going through (mean we) have to sell our clothes to eat and drink."

Widespread shortages and months of grinding war have generated a trade in old clothing, much of it salvaged from the homes of people who have died in the conflict.

At one makeshift market, shoes, shirts, sweaters and sneakers were laid out on dusty blankets, Reuters reported.

A girl tried on a single worn-out boot, which could come in handy this winter if she can afford it in Gaza's ruined economy.

A trader got an edge on his competitors by shouting out that his wares were European.

One man laughed as he got a young boy to try on a green jacket.

"We get clothing from a man whose house was destroyed. He was digging in the concrete to get some (clothing) and we buy them like this and sell them at a good price," displaced Palestinian Louay Abdel-Rahman said.

He and his family arrived in the city from another part of Gaza with only the clothes they were wearing. So he also keeps some back for them. "The seasons have changed from summer to winter and we need clothing," he said.

In April, the UN estimated it would take 14 years to dispose of the wreckage in Gaza. The UN official overseeing the problem said the clean-up would cost at least $1.2 billion.

More than 128,000 buildings have been destroyed or severely or moderately damaged in Gaza as a result of the conflict, the UN says. Underneath all of that are seams of mangled clothes.

"All our children only have short-sleeve clothing and nobody is helping them," Saeed Doula, a father-of-seven, said. "The war is all-encompassing."

Exclusive - Arabs in Kirkuk Refuse Peshmerga Return