Iraqi forces say they have seized a number of strategic oil fields and a military base on the outskirts of Kurdish-controlled Kirkuk, in an operation around the disputed city that pits two US allies against each other.
Kurds have controlled Kirkuk since driving out ISIS in 2014, but the city falls outside the internationally recognized autonomous Kurdish region in the northwest of Iraq.
The Iraqi operation, which began late Sunday, is the clearest indication yet of its determination to curtail the territorial ambitions of the Kurds, who included Kirkuk in a disputed independence referendum last month that caused consternation in Baghdad.
By Monday, Iraqi troops claimed to have taken control of key sites, including the Baba Karkar oil and gas field and the K1 military base, among other assets, Iraqi counter-Terrorism Forces spokesman Sabah al-Noman told CNN.
Clashes between the two sides erupted overnight, highlighting the complexities in the fight against ISIS, particularly for the US, which arms and supports both the Iraqi forces and Kurdish fighters. It again raises the long unanswered questions of how territory might eventually be divided along ethnic lines.
Iraqi security forces have said they do not intend to enter the disputed city in the operation, but its position in the south of the city gives it some control over access, and it is unlikely Baghdad will allow the territory to remain solely in Kurdish hands for long.
Three soldiers in the counter-terrorism unit told CNN they had ordered to advance towards the south and west of the city’s perimeter, secure entrances and take over a number of vital facilities.
The Iraqi operation is supported by the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), an Iranian-backed militia group that has helped spread Tehran’s influence in the Middle East.
US downplays clashes
Mahmoud Haji Mahmoud, commander of the Peshmerga forces in western Kirkuk, said advancing Iraqi troops were within 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) of the perimeter of the city and were setting up berms to use bulldozers near Peshmerga positions.
On Twitter Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called on citizens in Kirkuk to cooperate with Iraqi security forces, who he has directed to enter the city to impose security and provide protection for Kirkuk’s residents.
According to a spokesman for Masoud Barzani, the President of the Kurdish Regional Government, the Peshmerga were ordered not to “initiate any war, but if any advancing militia starts shooting, then Peshmerga have been given a green light to use every power to stand against them.”
In an interview with CNN, Bayan Sami Rahman — the representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government to the US — blamed the Iranian-backed militia for the fighting overnight. But she still called for dialogue with Baghdad.
“Our offer of dialogue with an open agenda remains on the table,” she told CNN on Monday. “We urge our friends to use (their) leadership role to prevent war.”
The US-led coalition played down the clashes, saying in a statement it was “aware of reports of a limited exchange of fire” in darkness before dawn, saying it appeared to be “a misunderstanding and not deliberate as two elements attempted to link up under limited visibility conditions.”
“We continue to advocate dialogue between Iraqi and Kurdish authorities. All parties must remain focused on the defeat of our common enemy, ISIS, in Iraq,” said Maj. Gen. Robert White, the coalition’s commanding general.
The statement made clear that it was not supporting either side near Kirkuk.
The Kurdistan Regional Security Council (KRSC) said Kurdish fighters, known as the Peshmerga, were attacked using “US military equipment, including Abrams tanks and Humvees.” It added the Peshmerga had destroyed a number of those Humvees.
A contentious city
The greater Kirkuk province is one of the most coveted of Iraq’s disputed territories. It has one of the biggest oil fields in the country — more than 6% of the world’s oil comes from the area.
Iraqi forces fled Kirkuk in 2014 as ISIS fighters attempted to secure the territory, shortly after taking over the city of Mosul and establishing their so-called Islamic caliphate across the northwest of the country.
The Kurds, however, sent in their fighters and claimed the city.
Kirkuk was historically a Kurdish-majority Iraqi town, but during his rule, ousted dictator Saddam Hussein moved Arab families in and Kurdish families out to change the area’s ethnography, under a policy termed “Arabization.” It’s also home to Sunni Arabs and Turkmen.
The city has suffered a series of major attacks over the past decade from extremists, including al Qaeda in Iraq, targeting mostly security forces there.
After the fall of Saddam, Kurds began returning to Kirkuk, repopulating the city and its surrounding areas in the event of an eventual referendum on whether the city should be part of a future Kurdistan or remain in Iraq.