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Kurdish Referendum: Kurds Freeze Secession, Call for Ceasefire

Kurdish Referendum: Kurds Freeze Secession, Call for Ceasefire
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Local Editor

The Kurdistan Regional Government [KRG] declared that it is freezing the results of a recent vote for separation from Iraq.

Kurdish Referendum: Kurds Freeze Secession, Call for Ceasefire

Based on a statement released by the KRG on Tuesday, they also called for an immediate ceasefire and a cessation to all military operations in the northern region.

It also proposed open dialog with Baghdad based on the Iraqi constitution.

The announcement came shortly after the parliament in the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region announced that legislative and presidential elections that were delayed due the ongoing political stand-off with Baghdad would be held in eight months.

The development may end weeks of simmering tensions between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government over the September 25 referendum, held in open defiance of the central government in Baghdad.

Meanwhile, it has been crystal clear that Iraq, along with neighbors Iran and Turkey, opposed the vote, warning that the referendum would further complicate the security situation in the Arab country that has been grappling with foreign-backed militancy in its north and west for the past three years.

Following the vote, Baghdad's central government shut down flights in and out of the region and ordered a halt to its independent crude oil sales.

The Kurdish region further slipped into political uncertainty after Iraqi forces captured the disputed city of Kirkuk last week. The oil-rich city and its surroundings, populated by Kurds, Arabs and Christians, have been at the heart of a long-running row between Erbil and Baghdad.

Gorran, the main opposition party to Kurdish Leader Masoud Barzani, issued a statement on Sunday, calling for his resignation, after holding the region's presidency since 2005. The opposition party said Barzani was responsible for the turmoil that followed the referendum.

Last week, Iraq's judiciary also issued arrest warrants for three senior Kurdish officials, who were allegedly behind the contentious plebiscite, which also faced strong opposition from regional countries, including Iran and Turkey.

Iraq's Supreme Court has already ruled the referendum unconstitutional.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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