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Kurdish Leader Warns of Iraqi Civil War
USA daily ^ | 7/31/07 | By HAMZA HENDAWI

Posted on 07/31/2007 6:37:54 PM PDT by Flavius

The leader of Iraq's Kurdish region warned Tuesday of a "real civil war" if the central government does not implement a constitutional clause on the future of Kirkuk, the oil-rich city claimed by the Kurds.

Control over Kirkuk and the surrounding oil wealth is in dispute among the city's Kurdish, Arab and ethnic Turkish populations. Nationally, the dispute pits the Kurds, who want to annex it to their autonomous region in northern Iraq, against the country's Arab majority and its small minority of Turks, known locally as Turkomen.

(Excerpt) Read more at usadaily.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: iraq; kurdistan; kurds; northernfront; turkomen; turkomenkurds; war

1 posted on 07/31/2007 6:37:56 PM PDT by Flavius
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To: Flavius

This has been at issue ever since the Iraqi Parliament came together.

Barzani told the television interviewer that Kurdish nationhood was a “reality” rather than a dream. A Kurdish homeland, he said, was a “natural right for a nation of more than 50 million people in the Middle East. Barzani warned. “If clause 140 is not implemented, then there will be a real civil war,” The Kurds have been promised control of oil-rich Kirkuk, which belonged to them prior to the Baathist takeover in 1968.

I think the Kurds are very adamant in what they say; they have a sizeable army and won’t hesitate to use it.


2 posted on 07/31/2007 6:55:23 PM PDT by Buzzm1
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To: Buzzm1

From the sound of it any civil war will most likely be started by the Kurds.


3 posted on 07/31/2007 6:57:22 PM PDT by monkeycard (There is no such thing as too much ammo.)
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To: monkeycard

Right now, the Kurds are staying out of the Sunni Shiite civil war. Kirkuk has started to heat up. Let’s hope it doessn’t ignite completely.


4 posted on 07/31/2007 7:29:07 PM PDT by Buzzm1
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To: Buzzm1

why? They have every right to duke it out.


5 posted on 07/31/2007 7:47:36 PM PDT by taxed2death (A few billion here, a few trillion there...we're all friends right?)
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To: Flavius

Decentralization seems to be in order for Iraq.


6 posted on 07/31/2007 8:25:36 PM PDT by TBP
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