QALA, Kurdistan Region – The Iraqi army and mainly Shiite Hashd al-Shaabi is preparing for an operation to clear the Tuz Khurmatu area of armed groups, according to a Shiite militia commander. They bombarded Kurdish villages east of Tuz Khurmatu on Tuesday, causing many who had been displaced on October 16 to flee again.
The bombardment was in response to a mortar attack on Tuz Khurmatu earlier in the day that killed at least one person.
A Hashd commander told their media on Tuesday that they shelled areas controlled by "the separatists" in preparation for an operation that will target areas east of Tuz Khurmatu.
"How much longer shall we remain displaced?" asked a tearful Rezan Abdulrazaq. She complained that the "Kurds have no friends" and always face displacement.
Packing up her belongings, she said she had to leave again to protect her “dignity” and that of her children, especially her daughters.
Rudaw's cameras captured at least two Iraqi helicopters hovering over areas near the village of Qala where about 80 families live, many of them displaced from Tuz Khurmatu. The bombardment lasted for two hours.
A Kurdish militia calling themselves the “Liberation Army” recently took up positions in areas east Tuz Khurmatu, vowing to oust Shiite militias from the ethnically diverse city. The force includes Peshmerga defectors and armed civilians from Tuz Khurmatu and is stationed in the Dawuda and Zinana areas.
A second unknown force has also been seen in the area. Locals believe they may be ISIS militants, but that is not confirmed.
There were no Kurdish forces in the areas that were being attacked, according to a local resident fleeing on his motorbike.
"I ask why they bomb these places," the man said, holding a cartridge case for a heavy machine gun.
Tens of people fled the areas being bombarded, many leaving their livestock behind according to Qala resident Hasan Ali.
"What is our sin to deserve being shot by helicopters?" Ali asked.
Rudaw understands that one Hashd fighter was killed and four civilians were wounded when mortars hit Tuz Khurmatu on Tuesday. Hashd media reported the death of a civilian.
Hemin Kaka Wais, displaced from Tuz Khurmatu, and his two brothers are all Peshmerga. Between his brothers and his father, he said they own five houses in the city and all were bombed "just because we are Peshmerga."
The house of his 75-year old disabled father was not spared, he said.
Wais was in Qala when the bombardment began on Tuesday. He said they are leaving the village, but do know where they will go.
Dler Abdullah, head of the KRG-controlled Nawjul town east of Khurmatu, said the Iraqi bombardment targeted "areas where mortars were fired.”
But he claimed Iraqi forces did not have evidence to prove who was responsible for the mortar attack.
"It is the forces whose identities are unknown. Nobody knows who they are," he said, adding that the Kurds are not a party to "the exchange of shelling" between the Iraqi forces and the unknown militias.
There are two Peshmerga units stationed under his administration in addition to police and Asayesh forces. He vowed to respond to any advancing forces if they attack areas under his control.
Some of the villages that were attacked by the Hashd are within the administration of Nawjul.
Abu Riza al-Najar, commander of the northern front of the Hashd al-Shaabi, stated that an operation to clean the mountainous areas of Tuz Khurmatu is "close."
Members of the Iraqi security forces and the Hashd will take part in the operation being launched in response to frequent bombardment, he said.
Hashd and the Iraqi forces on Tuesday started to bomb positions of "separatists" that caused casualties, he said.
The Hashd started to use the term “separatist,” referring to armed Kurdish fighters and the Peshmerga, following Iraq’s military incursion into the disputed areas.
Neither the Iraqi army nor the Peshmerga have issue statements regarding Tuesday's events near Tuz Khurmatu.
Hashd commander Najar said the anticipated Iraqi operation will also target other armed groups such as Sunni fighters and members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), based on "accurate intelligence."
The UN in Iraq “expressed its concern” about the mortar attacks, which resulted in Turkmen civilian casualties, and retaliation. It called for “an immediate end to acts that threaten the security and the safety of Kurdish and Turkmen communities.”
UNAMI urged the Iraqi government to take measures put an end to all violence in the city and help displaced residents return home.
Last updated at 11:51 p.m.