PKK says it won't heed a call by Nineveh council to leave Shingal

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) announced today that it will not respect the decision of the Nineveh council to expel PKK armed elements from Sinjar, describing the move as serving the interests of the Islamic State (ISIS).

“The Nineveh council decision is in the interest of Daesh,” said Agid Kalary, a PKK official based in Shingal, in a statement to Sumaria News. “The PKK elements won’t leave Sinjar.”

Kalary’s statement comes one week after Nineveh council voted against the presence of PKK forces in the Sinjar and Nineveh areas and asked them to leave.

“The Nineveh council voted that the PKK elements in the Nineveh areas should leave on the basis that their presence is bad for stability and prevents refugees from coming back home,” media advisor to the head of Nineveh provincial council, Abdul-Karim Gailani, stated on June 6.

“The presence of PKK in Sinjar and other areas is in violation of Iraqi sovereignty and they are an obstacle to stability in the area,” Gailani added. 

Noting that the Iraqi federal government is responsible for “Iraqi sovereignty and security,” Gailani asked Baghdad “to play a role in expelling PKK elements from Nineveh areas.”

The PKK participated in the operation to escort Yezidi civilians to safety in Rojava when ISIS attacked Shingal in 2014 and have mained a base in the area since.