Kurdish forces seize two oilfields in Iraq

Kurdish forces seize two oilfields in Iraq
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Kurdish forces seize two oilfields in Iraq, Kurdish security forces seized two major oilfields in Kirkuk on Friday after they expelled Arab workers and replaced them with Kurds, the Iraqi government said in a statement.

Baghdad: Kurdish security forces seized two major oilfields in Kirkuk on Friday after they expelled Arab workers and replaced them with Kurds, the Iraqi government said in a statement.
Kurdish fighters moved into the oil-rich city of Kirkuk
The statement issued by the country's oil ministry said that Kurdish forces, known as Peshmerga, stormed the crude oil production facilities of Kirkuk and Bay Hassan at dawn and took control of them, Xinhua reported.The ministry warned the Kurdish region of the consequences of such "irresponsible" move, which is considered as a violation of the constitution and national wealth, as well as "an ignorance to the federal authority and a threat to national unity". The ministry appealed to the "wise men from the Kurds about the necessity to understand the seriousness of the situation and to instruct those people responsible for this uncontrolled action to withdraw the armed force from these oilfields and evacuate immediately to avoid serious consequences", according to the statement.Meanwhile, Sunni militants have launched an offensive near Ramadi, capital of Iraq's Anbar province, killing 11 police and wounding 24 in clashes with the security forces, an officer and a doctor said.

…ask PM Maliki to step down

The Kurdish political bloc has stopped all participation in Iraq's national government over prime minister Nouri al-Maliki's comments that Kurds were hosting Sunni rebels in Erbil.

Iraq's foreign minister, Hoshiyar Zebari, said on Friday that Kurdish politicians would stop running their ministries, a day after they had announced a boycott of cabinet meetings. The ministries affected include Zebari's foreign ministry, the trade ministry, the ministry of migration, the health ministry and the deputy premiership, Reuters news agency reported.

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