Kalshan Kamal, a member of Iraq’s High commission of Elections,
revealed that the differences plaguing the political blocs are hindering
the local elections scheduled for next March in Kirkuk province, which
contains seven of the world’s oil fields.

Kamal told Azzaman yesterday [Nov. 12] that no political
agreement has been so far reached concerning the formula of updating the
voter registry or retaining old records.

Kamal said that the commission is waiting for the parliament to enact a
law on the elections in Kirkuk and the counting mechanism, adding,
however, that this has not taken place yet.

According to Kamal, the commission has formed a committee to
participate in any meeting that the parliament holds concerning a bill
on the elections in Kirkuk. However, no such meetings have been held due
to disagreements and differences between Kirkuk’s Arab, Kurdish,
Turkmen and Christian components.

For their part, the Kurdish parties organized
a demonstration in Kirkuk against what they described as the
militarization of civil society and the deployment of the Tigris forces,
formed by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, in Kirkuk.

Meanwhile, political sources inside Kirkuk told Azzaman that Kirkuk’s
population is living in terror, fearing the outbreak of armed clashes
between the Tigris forces and the Kurdish Peshmerga and the Asaish forces.

The sources said that dozens of foreign companies, especially Turkish
ones, have suspended their activities and closed their doors because of
the security situation. They said that the city’s trade activities are
experiencing a downfall.

The sources explained that the North Oil Company (NOC), which is
composed of Kurdish elements, has upped the level of surveillance on oil
wells and NOC department buildings in Kirkuk for fear of attack on the
part of the Tigris forces, but the sources said that oil production is still normal.

The sources pointed that the Tigris forces are still receiving weaponry
reinforcements, as arms continue to flow to the Kurdish Peshmerga and
Asaish forces.

They added that the Tigris forces, whose camps are only 15 km away from
the center of Kirkuk, are moving southwest and northwest. The Peshmerga
and the Asaish, however, are moving northeast of Kirkuk as the security
forces beef up their presence in the city center.

Kirkuk’s Arabs support handing over the security issue to the Tigris
forces. For their part, the city’s Kurds are against such step, and the
Turkmen express reservations.

The sources said that the conflicting parties are trying to strengthen
their military and security control ahead of the local elections, a date
that, according to the people, will witness the start of a war.

For his part, President of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region Massoud Barzani said
that the Iraqi government’s formation of the military-operations
command in the disputed areas in Kirkuk is unconstitutional, expressing
his rejection of this action.

Barzani said that the formation of the Tigris Operations Command in the
areas of Kirkuk and Diyala is an unconstitutional step on the part of
the Iraqi government led by Nouri al-Maliki.

In a statement issued by the presidency of the Kurdistan region of
Iraq, Barzani added it was necessary to draw public attention in
Kurdistan and Iraq in general to the fact that there have been doubts
and fears since the very beginning of the formation of the so-called
Tigris Operations Command, because it was founded with intentions that
are contrary to Kurdish interests, the democratic process and
coexistence in the areas outside of Kurdistan.

The Kurds are demanding that the oil-rich city of Kirkuk be appended to
Kurdistan through the application of Article 140 of the constitution,
meaning a referendum in Kirkuk, a process that Baghdad opposes.

Barzani said he had given Baghdad lawmakers enough time to deliver on
the promises they gave to His Excellency President Jalal Talabani
concerning the dissolution of the Tigris Command. During that period,
Barzani said the people of Kurdistan had not taken any escalatory steps
because they believed in dialogue and negotiations.