UPDATE – Curfew declared in Iraq’s Kirkuk amid protests

UPDATES WITH PRIME MINISTER’S ORDER

By Haydar Karaalp

KIRKUK, Iraq (AA) – Local authorities declared a curfew in Iraq’s northern city of Kirkuk on Saturday amid protests demanding the reopening of a highway linking the city to Erbil.

In a statement, Kirkuk police called on local residents to return to their homes.

Supporters of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) staged a demonstration in Kirkuk on Saturday to demand the reopening of the Kirkuk-Erbil highway.

The highway was closed by Iraqi Turkmens who oppose the handover of the Joint Operations Command building to the KDP.

Protesters blocked some roads by burning tires with police firing warning shots, according to witnesses.

Ambulances were dispatched to the area, witnesses said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani ordered his security forces to launch an operation against rioters in the city.

Last week, protests broke out in Kirkuk against a government decision to hand over the building to the KDP, which argues that the building was previously used by them and it should be given back to the party.

Peshmerga forces of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) were deployed to bases evacuated by the Iraqi army in Kirkuk following the emergence of the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group in 2014.

In 2017, Iraqi government forces entered Kirkuk, ending the Peshmerga presence in the city.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi