KDP to return to Tuz Khurmatu: Official
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is set to return to the disputed town of Tuz Khurmatu in Salahaddin province, nearly seven years after leaving the area in the aftermath of the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum, a provincial official told Rudaw.
Kawa Sheikhani, security advisor to Salahaddin’s governor, said that the KDP will return and re-open its regional office in Tuz Khurmatu within the month.
He revealed that Salahaddin Governor Badr al-Fahl is scheduled to visit Tuz Khurmatu soon to investigate the situation in the district and address the problems that Kurds face in the area.
On Sunday, KDP leader Masoud Barzani received Fahl and his delegation, including Sheikhani, in Erbil.
“During the meeting, visions and viewpoints were exchanged about the general situation in Iraq and the conditions of citizens in the provinces of central Iraq, as well as coordination between Salahaddin province and the provinces of the Kurdistan Region were emphasized,” said a statement from Barzani’s office.
According to Sheikhani, Barzani called on the governor to “treat all communities in Salahaddin equally and without discrimination” in the meeting.
Tuz Khurmatu is home to Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen. The KDP and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, as well as many Kurdish residents, left the district when Iraqi forces retook control and expelled Kurdish security forces following the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum in September 2017.
In late 2023, the KDP reopened its offices in oil-rich Kirkuk, another disputed city, despite strong opposition from pro-Iran Shiite militia groups.
Kurds have only one representative on the 15-member Salahaddin provincial council – Yassin Dawoodi from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).
Kawa Sheikhani, security advisor to Salahaddin’s governor, said that the KDP will return and re-open its regional office in Tuz Khurmatu within the month.
He revealed that Salahaddin Governor Badr al-Fahl is scheduled to visit Tuz Khurmatu soon to investigate the situation in the district and address the problems that Kurds face in the area.
On Sunday, KDP leader Masoud Barzani received Fahl and his delegation, including Sheikhani, in Erbil.
“During the meeting, visions and viewpoints were exchanged about the general situation in Iraq and the conditions of citizens in the provinces of central Iraq, as well as coordination between Salahaddin province and the provinces of the Kurdistan Region were emphasized,” said a statement from Barzani’s office.
According to Sheikhani, Barzani called on the governor to “treat all communities in Salahaddin equally and without discrimination” in the meeting.
Tuz Khurmatu is home to Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen. The KDP and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, as well as many Kurdish residents, left the district when Iraqi forces retook control and expelled Kurdish security forces following the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum in September 2017.
In late 2023, the KDP reopened its offices in oil-rich Kirkuk, another disputed city, despite strong opposition from pro-Iran Shiite militia groups.
Kurds have only one representative on the 15-member Salahaddin provincial council – Yassin Dawoodi from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).