Armed men ‘abduct’ 2 Kurds in Kirkuk

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Two Kurds, including one Peshmerga, were “abducted” by uniformed perpetrators late on Friday in Taqtaq village, Dubiz district, Kirkuk. The civilian's corpse was found on Saturday.

“The armed abductors were wearing military uniform and attacked Taqtaq village. After interrogating some people, they abducted two people, Fahmi Salih and Sarhan Mohammed, to an unknown place. The latter is a Peshmerga,” said Jassim Abdul-Rahman, head of Dubiz District Council, on Saturday.

Dubiz (also called Dibis) is located in the northwest of Kirkuk province.

Abdul-Rahman added they reported the incident to the Iraqi Security Forces who were hindered by a booby trap explosion when responding, so they could not immediately enter the village. 

“But on early Saturday the corpse of Fahmi Salih was found,” he explained of the civilian.

Abdul-Rahman did not provide further why the suspects conducted the kidnappings and killing.

However, disputes between local Kurds and the Arabs, who have been recently brought to Kirkuk, have swelled. 

The previous regime began an Arabization policy in strategic and oil-rich Kirkuk in 1975. Kurds were ejected from their lands which were given to Arabs from elsewhere in Iraq. 

Following the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Kurds who could prove they were native to Kirkuk were returned per Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution. 

Following the events of October 2017, Kurds fled and acting Governor Rakan al-Jabouri, an Arab, has resumed the Arabization process.