Iraq’s Kurdistan Alliance supports establishment of Regions

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A legislature of Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s Alliance has expressed support for the establishment of new Regions in Iraq, provided Baghdad would implement Article 140 of the Constitution, related to the settlement of areas-in-conflict between Baghdad and Kurdistan. “The Kurdistan Alliance supports the establishment of Regions in different Iraqi Provinces, confirming necessity for the implementation of Article 140 of the areas- in-conflict between the Central government in Baghdad and Arbil‘s local government, being a constitutional right,” Mahma Khalil told IraqiNews.com news agency on Thursday. The Council of north-central Iraq’s Province of Salahal-Din had announced intention to transform the Province into an economically and administratively independent “Region”, a decision, supported by northern Iraq’s Ninewa Province, both Provinces of which include areas-in-conflict between Baghdad and Arbil. The difference over the said areas is centered on their fate in the event of traforming the provinces comprising them into such Regions, before the settlement of Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution, confronting broad challenges. As regards to the special committee, formed between the Kurdistan Alliance and the State of Law Alliance to settle the said differences, Khalil said that “that the committee would be activated after Eid al-Adha holidays, that ended on Wednesday, to settle differences, including the Oil & Gas draft-law, the rights of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces and Article 140,” expressing hope to reach “positive results during the forthcoming period.” The Chairman of Kurdistan Region’s Diwan (office), Fuad Hussein, had stated at the end of October last that a visit by a Kurdistan delegation to Baghdad “had achieved positive results to settle the said differences,” stressing that the delegation had achieved an agreement with the Baghdad government about the suspended issues, includintg the Oil & Gas draft-law, Article 140 and the material allocations for the Peshmerga forces. SKH (ST) Number of Reads:439