EXCLUSIVE: Peshmerga in fight against Baghdad bureaucracy
The issue of delayed salaries for Peshmerga fighters, despite their continuing fight against ISIS, has become a heated issue in Baghdad.
Although the Peshmerga have been recognized as an Iraqi defense force, Baghdad has combined the Peshmerga's budget with other ongoing disputes between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government. The result has been the withholding of the budget to fund the Kurdish forces, leaving some Peshmerga without pay for at least three months.
The debate has divided Iraq's parliament between those politicians who feel the Peshmerga deserve recognition and their budget, and those who feel the Peshmerga are too autonomous to be paid for by the central government.
Although the Peshmerga have been recognized as an Iraqi defense force, Baghdad has combined the Peshmerga's budget with other ongoing disputes between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government. The result has been the withholding of the budget to fund the Kurdish forces, leaving some Peshmerga without pay for at least three months.
The debate has divided Iraq's parliament between those politicians who feel the Peshmerga deserve recognition and their budget, and those who feel the Peshmerga are too autonomous to be paid for by the central government.