Mediations in Iraq’s Kirkuk Seek to Defuse Tensions

Vehicles move along a road in Iraq's multi-ethnic northern city of Kirkuk (disputed between Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad) on September 5, 2023. (AFP)
Vehicles move along a road in Iraq's multi-ethnic northern city of Kirkuk (disputed between Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad) on September 5, 2023. (AFP)
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Mediations in Iraq’s Kirkuk Seek to Defuse Tensions

Vehicles move along a road in Iraq's multi-ethnic northern city of Kirkuk (disputed between Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad) on September 5, 2023. (AFP)
Vehicles move along a road in Iraq's multi-ethnic northern city of Kirkuk (disputed between Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad) on September 5, 2023. (AFP)

Military vehicles carrying soldiers and special forces, and riot police arrived in Kirkuk amid reports that a Kurdish protest was being planned in the Iraqi city.

A senior officer said the security forces have received orders from top officials to prevent any unlicensed protest.

The pro-Iran Coordination Framework and Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) have agreed for leader of the Sovereignty coalition, Khamis Khanjar, and others to play a mediator role to defuse tensions in Kirkuk, said informed sources.

Khanjar arrived in the city on Thursday to attend a meeting of the local security committee and pave the way for dialogue and an end to the protest movement that may undermine stability.

Khanjar had also received a statement from the KDP that underlines that it was not involved in any of the protests.

The mediations have so far managed to restore calm, but the roots of the problem remain.

Supporters of the KDP believe that the restored calm is a “blow to their presence in Kirkuk” as their Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) rival prepares to consolidate its power in the city given its growing rapprochement with Shiite factions.

The PUK and Shiite factions appear to be siding together against their “common enemy”, KDP leader Masoud Barzani. However, settling scores in such an ethnically diverse city such as Kirkuk would be “playing with fire”, said a local government official.

Kirkuk was supposed to be subject to article 140 of the constitution that would call for a census and referendum over its fate. However, after the Iraqi federal forces seized control of the city in 2016, the Shiite factions believe that the application of the article was no longer necessary.

As it stands, the Coordination Framework and KDP have agreed to allow Khanjar to play the role of mediator.

The Framework is not seeking a decisive solution to the situation in Kirkuk, but they want to secure calm long enough for local elections to be held, tentatively at the end of the year.

The informed sources said the political contacts between the various parties have eased the tensions, but they are unable to decisively resolve the dispute.



UN Says ‘Deliberate’ Choices ‘Systematically’ Depriving Gazans

04 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Nusirat: Displaced Palestinians gather in a charity kitchen to receive aid amid a shortage of food, in Nuseirat refugee camp. (Belal Abu Amer/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa)
04 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Nusirat: Displaced Palestinians gather in a charity kitchen to receive aid amid a shortage of food, in Nuseirat refugee camp. (Belal Abu Amer/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa)
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UN Says ‘Deliberate’ Choices ‘Systematically’ Depriving Gazans

04 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Nusirat: Displaced Palestinians gather in a charity kitchen to receive aid amid a shortage of food, in Nuseirat refugee camp. (Belal Abu Amer/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa)
04 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Nusirat: Displaced Palestinians gather in a charity kitchen to receive aid amid a shortage of food, in Nuseirat refugee camp. (Belal Abu Amer/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa)

The UN aid chief said Wednesday that recent "horrifying scenes" of Gazans being killed while seeking food aid were the result of "deliberate choices that have systematically deprived" them of essentials to survive.

A US and Israeli-backed group operating aid sites in the Gaza Strip announced the temporary closure of its facilities on Wednesday, with the Israeli army warning that roads leading to distribution centers were "considered combat zones".

The announcement by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation follows a string of deadly incidents near the distribution sites it operates.

On Tuesday, 27 people were killed in southern Gaza when Israeli troops opened fire near a GHF aid site, with the military saying the incident was under investigation.

"The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat," UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement.

"Emergency medical teams have confirmed treating hundreds of trauma cases. Yesterday alone, dozens were declared dead at hospitals after Israeli forces said they had opened fire.

"This is the outcome of a series of deliberate choices that have systematically deprived two million people of the essentials they need to survive."

He echoed the call by UN chief Antonio Guterres for immediate independent investigations, saying they were not isolated incidents, and the perpetrators must be held accountable.

"No-one should have to risk their life to feed their children," said Fletcher.

The GHF began operations a week ago, but the UN and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with it over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.

Meanwhile the United Nations has described the amount of aid allowed into Gaza, after Israel partially lifted a more than two-month total blockade, as a trickle.

"We must be allowed to do our jobs: we have the teams, the plan, the supplies and the experience," said Fletcher, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator.

"Open the crossings -- all of them. Let in life-saving aid at scale, from all directions. Lift the restrictions on what and how much aid we can bring in.

"Ensure our convoys aren't held up by delays and denials. Release the hostages. Implement the ceasefire."