Peshmerga’s presence in Ninewa in accordance with agreement- list

NINEWA / IraqiNews.com: A spokesperson for the Ninewa Fraternal List on Saturday said that the presence of the Peshmerga forces in Ninewa province is established in accordance with an agreement between the federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government Kurdistan RegionG). “The departure of Peshmerga forces will not solve pending problems in the province,” Darman Khitari told IraqiNews.com news agency. “Citizens do not want these forces to go out because this will create a security vacuum…,” Khitari added. Members of the Ninewa Fraternal List said that they would boycott provincial council meetings, citing al-Hadbaa’s obtaining of all key positions in the province. On April 12, al-Hadbaa List distributed all key positions in Ninewa’s provincial council among its representatives, who secured 25 votes. The final results of the Ninewa provincial council elections, held on January 31, 2009, saw al-Hadbaa list winning 19 seats, followed by the Ninewa Fraternal list with 12 seats and the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) of Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi three seats as well as one seat for each of the Christians, the Shabaks and Yazidis. Mosul, the capital city of Ninewa province, lies 405 km north of Baghdad. SS (S) 1