the kurdish peshmerga to control the kirkuk after the iraqi army fled in islip fence even two thousand and fourteen. but there's never been agreement between the kurdish regional government ok r g and the federal government in baghdad about who should be in control here and benefit most from the areas vast oil wealth. kirkuk at an eighty percent turnout in the referendum on kurdish the session the day after the vote the iraqi parliament asked prime minister hyderabadi to send troops into kurdish controlled disputed areas like kirkuk and take back control of the oil fields the kurdish governor of kirkuk hopes he doesn't heed to parliament's demand prime minister has made it clear that force is not. how he will approach this thing. and i agree with him and we don't expect a force to be used but of course there are people may be not under his control who may try to do this parliament earlier this month voted to remove mr karim but he has refused to go and anything that comes against me for my patriotic position. it's it's an honor for me many kurds call kirkuk their jerusalem but there ar

more now from journalist a bigot svenson she joins us on the line from kirkuk one of the disputed parts of iraq where this fog was held welcome bigots so ninety two percent in favor of independence how's the result being seen where you are well the people are not ready surprised here in kirkuk they were expecting it and already jokes come up that we go back to the old days off of them saying when we had similar results over ninety percent this was usual when saddam called all the polls so they say we know all that now iraq's government refused to recognize this referendum tell us about their reaction. yeah he was a special session this this afternoon and the parliament in back of that and prime minister about he was talking and he was very far in rejecting this referendum and the result and he say he will not have any dialogue with the kurdish regional government in erbil without cancellation of the outcome of the referendum and he said as well that he holds onto the you'll do you want to make them he gave the conditions regional government asked to hand over the airport controls this m

and take back control of the oil fields and the kurdish governor of kirkuk hopes he doesn't heed to parliament's demand prime minister about he has made it clear that force is not how you will approach this thing. and i agree with him and we don't expect a force to be used but of course there are people maybe not under his control who may try to do this parliament earlier this month voted to remove mr karim but he has refused to go and anything that's comes against me for my patriotic position. it's it's an ominous for me many kurds call kirkuk their jerusalem but there are also turkomans arabs and christians here too there are also hundreds of thousands of arabs that have arrived here in recent years fleeing eisel and they feel very let down by the baghdad government there's also considerable opposition amongst the arabs and the turkmen about any idea with respect to kirkuk being part of a future independent kurdish state the vast majority of turkmen and arabs who have lived in kirkuk for generations boycotted the referendum this if you to the area and the borders of k r g is not a

who control was kirkuk was at the heart of the referendum on kurdish independence you could say they will fight anyone who tries to take it from them. that al-jazeera will bill. the united nations has agreed to start an independent investigation into human rights abuses by old sides in the war in yemen it's a compromise between western powers and arab nations including saudi arabia and follows weeks of intense negotiations allegations have been made against everyone involved in this conflict since twenty fifteen government forces backed by a saudi led coalition have been fighting with the rebels supported by iran. and the by the let the matter with the complex circumstances that yemen is going through requires from the council and the international community support so the government can fulfill its obligations with regards to human rights the yemeni government has always expressed its determination to cooperate with the u.n. in order to promote and protect human rights in the u.s. envoy to the u.n. in geneva says he's pleased member countries voted unanimously for that investigation

troia's kirkuk which at the heart of the referendum kurdish independence. occurred saying they would fight if you tried to take it from them john strafford al jazeera well up to twenty eight people have been killed in airstrikes in the rebel held it clipped province of syria the u.k. based group the syrian observatory for human rights says that four children were amongst the dead they've not been able to verify whether the strikes were carried out by the syrian government or its main ally russia an air france plane has made an emergency landing in canada after an apparent engine explosion the airline says the airbus a three eighty was flying from paris to l.a. when it suffered what was described as serious engine damage over the north atlantic and diverted to goose bay at least fifty people have been arrested in the swedish city of gothenburg during a demonstration held by a far right who are members of the nordic resistance movement fought with came to demonstrate its history far works the group which promotes anti semitic ideas time the march to coincide

for the very latest on this let's bring in bill gates fans and he joins us on the line from kirkuk and one of the disputed parts of iraq where this vote was held. first off what do the people who've been celebrating in places like care where you are want to say are they expecting this referendum to bring independence. you have a morning now they don't expect this referendum to bring independence and the. atmosphere in cocos was very much divided i mean there was the kurdish parties they were celebrating yesterday but not in the turkmen and not in the our parts because there were boycotting the elections so it is a very mixed and somehow a very critical situation in kirkuk because it's cheer cooked to be the hot spot in all that so if this tank sions will imply and mr about he made it very firm yesterday that he wants to have full border control over iraq's borders to watch turkey and iran and poor bought full control over the airports in erbil and still money and kirkuk as well although in kirkuk you have what is only military airport and not a civil airport so the automatic yeah you m

which was kirkuk was at the heart of the referendum on kurdish independence. the kurds say they will fight him when he tries to take it from them john strafford al jazeera. up to twenty eight people have been killed in airstrikes in the rebel held it bled province of syria u.k. based group the syrian observatory for human rights says that four children are amongst the dead they've not been able to verify whether the strikes were carried out by the syrian government or its main ally russia rescue workers on the ground have accused the two countries killing scores of civilians in airstrikes began after rebels launched an offensive against government held areas in the north west of the country already at the spot. thousands of people gathered in washington on saturday to protest against racism at least for tell us in the u.s. two rallies were held the march for racial justice and the march for black women organizers called for an end to what they say is systemic way says a day marks the anniversary of the elaine assoc or one nine hundred nineteen for more than on

kirkuk at an eighty percent turnout in the referendum on kurdish the session but they are to the vote the iraqi parliament prime minister hydra liberty to send troops into kurdish controlled disputed areas like cook and take back control of the oil fields because as governor of kirkuk hopes he doesn't heed to parliament's demand prime minister has made it clear that force is not. how he will approach this thing. and i agree with him and we don't expect a force to be used but of course there are people may be not under his control who may try to do this parliament earlier this month voted to remove mr karim but he has refused to go and anything that comes against me for my patriotic position it's it's an honor for me many kurds call kirkuk their jerusalem but there are also turkomans arabs and christians here too there are also hundreds of thousands of arabs that have arrived here in recent years fleeing i saw and they feel very let down by the baghdad government there's also considerable opposition amongst the arabs and the turkmen about any idea with respect to kirkuk being part of a

or an eyesore swept across northern and central iraq it was kurdish peshmerga forces who secured kirkukis also gave them control of a place that's long been claimed as part of an independent kurdistan the population of kirkuk is diverse with a mix of kurds arabs turkmen and assyrians and the province is very rich in oil and speed tug of war over whether it remains part of iraq as the government in baghdad once or becomes part of kurdistan as the leaders of the autonomous north are pushing for the kurdish president has condemned the removal of kirkuk governor and the man himself told out of there the vote was unlawful and he has no intention of leaving office. they can make whatever decision they want to make i'm staying in my course prime minister does not have the powers to ask the pardon or the movie. because kirk is run by the brim and this is according to the law that was passed in the iraqi parliament in two thousand and eight the he has the power with other governments but not with because. this is unlawful and illegal and we will not abide there is absolutely nothing that for the

in kirkuk now because kirkuk is one of the disputed areas and in kirkuk the situation is completely different we can't cook today and it's multi-ethnic people living here now are up kurds and turkmen so kirkuk is very much disputed not likely to be lost in the money. going to kurdish fighters have been playing a very central role in battling islamic state in the region this iraqi kurdish leaders the confidence to hold this referendum. yes sure because we have a new calendar as to say in recession in the nose of iraq this is before and after i says this is how the people count and before i says could is done was restricted to the four provinces and below the hook solomon yeah and how that just now they claim the land the bush medal was one thousand four this means kirkuk and singe are and many other places in iraq and this means that could is time expended forty percent of its jerry jerry this is the issue now ok what about that area are people there expecting independence after they drove out islamic state on their own. you mean in can't cook. in these liberated areas where i ask has been dri

kirkuk had an eighty percent turnout in the referendum on kurdish the session the day after the vote the iraqi parliament asked prime minister hydrilla party to send troops into kurdish controlled disputed areas like kirkuk and take back control of the oil fields and the kurdish governor of kirkuk hopes he doesn't heed to parliament's demand prime minister about he has made it clear that force is not how you will. approach this thing. and i agree with him and we don't expect a force to be used but of course there are people may be not under his control who may try to do this parliament earlier this month voted to remove mr karim but he has refused to go and anything that comes against me for my patriotic position. it's it's an honor for me many kurds call kirkuk their jerusalem but there are also turkomans arabs and christians here too there are also hundreds of thousands of arabs that have arrived here in recent years fleeing i saw and they feel very let down by the baghdad government there's also considerable opposition amongst the arabs and the turkmen about any idea with respect

is part of the problem when you mention kirkuk there holder is part of the problem with kirkuk the way that it's technically speaking some people say look it's outside the region that would become an independent kurdistan and on top of that it's got oil and on top of that as well i guess it is a blend of different people from different groupings. absolutely i mean since the fall of saddam hussein in two thousand and three has been a bone of contention between the two sides and article one forty of the constitution which is the one that was supposed to deal with the issue of the disputed. calling for population census and then a referendum basically asking the same question that this is more or less the same question i would say that was asked in this referendum people there were supposed to answer whether they wanted to be part of the kurdish region or remain. part of the central government in baghdad that never happened in the meantime there's a lot of accusations that after the fall of saddam hussein hundreds of thousands of kurds have relocated to kirkuk they say that they had been

iraq's parliament votes to sack the governor of the contested province of kirkuk but he vows to stay put. every effort to get here in doha with the top stories from al-jazeera this hour more than twenty students die in a fire at a boarding school in. north korea threatens to sink japan with a nuclear bomb to punish it for supporting tougher u.n. sanctions against the regime. and zimbabwe's president helps to roll out a new election system for next year's poll that some worry that it could lead to voter fraud. the governor of the iraqi province of kirkuk has told al-jazeera that he will remain in office following a vote to remove him from his post the vote comes after a local council meeting in kirkuk to discuss plans to hold a referendum on kurdish independence the national government and iraq's neighbors are opposed to the vote earlier this week parliament in baghdad or the rawest prime minister body to take quote all measures to preserve national unity or kurdish forces took control of the. cooking twenty fourteen after ice or swept across northern and central iraq cooks home to ar

cook because kirkuk is actually. a lifeline to both sides here. thanks very much. well mark jobs where he is associate professor in contemporary history of the middle east of the middle east a catchall university he says iraq iran and turkey all coordinating their response to that referendum we have to expect more pressure on and produce that i think this is these are the first step of the pressure. kurdistan and. they have to show good willingness. to the central government and they have not done this yet and i think they do that unless they confirm that you know they are willing to cooperate and to coordinate further steps and actually the request of on the central government is actually to do you know announce that this referendum is illegal i'm not sure that the kurdistan will be able to do this after the ninety two percent of the you know voters said yes so could the stand and the severe pressure if the international community would not intervene to do anything i think has to play with the regional players and to give a concession so they can go ahead on their

areas outside ministration are also voting that includes the multi-ethnic and oil rich province of kirkuk that is further angered the government in baghdad which along with iran turkey and syria all opposed the vote they fear an independent kurdish state could fuel for the separatism among their own kurdish populations seen here in orange the u.s. is also against the vote calling it provocative and destabilizing the u.n. has issued a similar warning let's take you live now to bill and our correspondent tracking the poll. to turn out like so far. actually opened up about. earlier we so. ballot but the very very early minutes. voting day there are some people already. going to make their way about five thousand voters registered. region more than three million if you add the disputed. commission will tell you that the total number of potential voters would be more than five million. voters would come in so this is basically the first vote. they registered and then they come here. on this ballot you have. in kurdish and no and then you have that. in three different languages kurdish and on t

for people to be able to vote now that's been rejected by politicians from kirkuk the arab list and took when she have said they won't take. in any referendum vote other kurds have said they will take part in kirkuk it's going to be a flashpoint the kurds have already sent troops to kirkuk ahead of any potential referendum happening and it's one of the big shia militias has said that if a ballot box takes place the view that as an act of aggression but right now they're talking inside the parliament a vote will take place the meeting as i said for about an hour and a half now so the vote should take place fairly shortly we are expecting it to policy unanimously. position as you've been saying from the central government in baghdad also concerns about this from iraq's neighbors could there be further obstacles to it taking place. what it was really depends on war iraq does next and what baghdad does next was this is past eight makes it constitutional for the kurdish problem to be able to say yes the vote does play take place on september twenty fifth what options then does baghdad ha

as you well know in kirkuk you have what is on the military airport a not a civil airport. yet you mention different critical situation. baghdad is threatening sanctions what should the region expect. well the region well i expect that first of all it's a lesson for mr buzz on and this is how i see it it's a lesson for most of us i need he's not an island he's not alone on this what in the past to consider the interests of others he has to consider dangerous but not the interests of the neighbors turkey and iran this is i think the lesson he has to take ok now baghdad says it's preparing for a deployment of iraqi government forces in kurdish territory are we likely to see that well i don't see the push mat motivating more den before you have to consider that they are operating anyway in the into problems of kirkuk just fifteen i met just south of your book is how we judge and how we jet is still controlled by isis so down operating that together with the iraqi army and together with the shia militias just fifty people made us out of coke like you know the kurds are increasi

kirkuk though just to be clear on that point it is not what the kurds would like to see turning into to stop them so does this make mr body feel the need to stamp his authority a vote that he does not want to see taking place. absolutely was going on here is lined with geography it's technically it is iraqi territory however the kurds claim it baghdad says no it's not it's part of federal iraq or forty it's long been a bone of contention. the kurds want the referendum to take place within itself as part of kurdish territory that's angered arab and. m.p.'s from that region who refuse to take part in the vote so far they say it's not of kurdish territory social potential territory so it cannot be part of this vote because they know it's out territory we control if we want to be part of any for a future kurdistan him around thanks very much representatives of the syrian government and opposition groups are meeting in kazakhstan for the sixth round of talks to end the civil war the discussions in astana brokered by the russians the turks and the iranians child what is there for us. well

as well although in kirkuk we don't have civil aviation we don't have military every nation and then he wants to have full control about the border with turkey and iran which could include his son faces so and this will must happen until friday six pm if not he will close the airspace and he will close the borders and quote istanbul be isolated so this is the last position i go i say this referendum but i was opposed not only within iraq but also internationally of america in turkey amongst the critics given the opposition internally and externally what was that what is the kurdish leadership hoping to achieve with this vote. well first of all about money wants to have an independent state he wants to lead good it's done to independents he wants to have an own state the problem is that he's not restricted only to the four kurdish provinces so the money out of you know the who and how love just which have already already autonomy but he wants to integrate as well as so-called disputed areas like kill cook and this is the big problem because kirkuk was under the control of baghdad befo

fight against arsenal is ongoing and interestingly he also mentioned that vital oil rich city of kirkuk which is in one of the disputed areas that the peshmerga took control of after the iraq army abandoned it in the face of a nice living in two thousand and fourteen and there i saw there are a lot of myself fighters in the area of how. south of that city so again highlighting i am how important it was for unity in that fight against i saw focusing on kirkuk in that disputed area. he also spoke about. how the consequences of the referendum completely. weakened that fight and he brought in interestingly reference to saddam hussein. he said that saddam was a dictator and he committed crimes against the people of iraq and he said that he didn't want to see those kind of crimes potentially happening here again. as i think you mentioned there there have been obviously a lot of threats made by the government the most recent one we're hearing now is that the kurdish authorities have been given three days to hand over control of their airports and airspace or face some sort of air in bargo here

because in kirkuk a lot of people all groups of you react is live together arabs turkmen current of course as well and they are like one third of the population so in. everything is cooking up mourad and it's above kid cooked everything was cooking up and it's going to cook being a big problem and what is happening now is for example just months to rely very much on the un turkey and they hope that turkey will help them that kid cook will not be under conditions. that spence and co cork thank you but the european commission has put forward new plans to address europe's migration crisis it wants to settle fifty thousand more refugees and to deport more migrants was asylum applications fail or who reach the e.u. for economic reasons the issue of immigration has divided a new member state since the mass influx of twenty fifty. scenes like this have become familiar over the past two years and the e.u. wants to put a stop to them on wednesday it launched another attempt to tackle the migrant crisis european migration commissioner dimitris adam up to last night's a new scheme to recycle r

in the meantime iraq's parliament has voted to remove the governor of kirkuk the vote comes after a local council meeting in cold. showed support for plans to hold a referendum on kurdish independence the iraqi government and iraq's neighbors are opposed to the vote earlier this week parliament authorized prime minister hyderabadi to quote take all measures to preserve national unity of so i strive is a visiting fellow at nottingham university joins us now live from london what is the significance of this it's very significant in that it is highlighting the tensions that exist within the government in baghdad and in what is now being called kurdistan the region of kurdistan in iraq the there are two controversial issues here one is the issue of the referendum later on this month for kurdish independence and within that issue is a controversial sub issue which is the the position of cold cook cook is a contested area that until recently was not under kurdish control it was seen as being part of the wider iraqi government's remit but since isis the kurdish government has had security contro

kirkuk is of particular importance because cookies that oil rich city it's about half an hour from here two large oil fields there. the vote particularly controversial there are security fears in that city we understand that thus far so far today there have been no incidents we've seen pictures of people celebrating on the streets but it is as i say again very ethnically diverse you have turkmen shia in that area you have a syrians christians arab sunnis and kurds and certainly the area around it as we know is still under threat from eisel the area south the area of how we we know there are ongoing military operations in there still battling with lysol an operation that the kurds say that they are still going to be very much involved in the kurdish government says that kirkuk is ours i mean to the point where kurds actually refer sometimes to kirkuk as their jerusalem and they say that they will not be giving it up people down there voting in this referendum but as i say it's cities like that which have so much potential wealth that make it so controversial all right charles many thanks

well we've seen pictures of kirkuk celebrations there going on we understand it has been by and large fairly calm there was reports of a minor clash between what was reported as being a. turkmen shia militias there but as i say it has been relatively calm so far this city is a huge significance in this referendum again it was taken control of by the patient when it was basically described as a desertion happened by the iraqi army when i saw the approach the peshmerga have been in control there since two thousand and fifteen it's hugely important because of its economic significance there are two very large oil fields in that area the kurds are adamant that they are not going to give that city back and in fact they actually call it many kurds actually call it the jerusalem of curtis stone it is very ethnically diverse there are a turk when she there are there are syrian christians and of course there are there are as well the the baghdad government is very angry about kirkuk being involved in this referendum and they've been warnings from shia militias in the area as well that if they

goes ahead, there is a real risk that there may be a conflict between kurdistan and iraq, and that kirkuke the issue between the governments, might be at the center of the violence. there is a lot of fear and uncertainty over the future, and a lot of anticipation of what will happen over the next few days. in with theing headlines, emmanuel macron's french labor reform set to be signed into law. a possibleints of hydrogen bomb test over the pacific ocean. and the looming referendum in uk andovince of kirk between the federal government and baghdad. time for a business update. we are joined here by brian quinn. ryan, we will start off in london. that is where there has been a major legal blow to uber. brian: the city's main transport regulator says they will not renew the license after it expires on september 30, citing public safety and security concerns. listsort from london attaining medical certificates, the use of software known as "gravol," used by uber to identify and deny service to inrs if believed to be violation of the terms of use. the loss of this license will affect over 40,0

we understand the kirkuk turnout has been big as well is obviously a major importance this is a very oil rich city there are two oil fields in that area understood that the kurdish regional government exports around at least six hundred thousand barrels of oil a day for a pipeline that runs across turkey as if huge called since and again it was taking control of by the patient in the fight against eisel the kurds referred to kirkuk many kurds refer to kirkuk as the jerusalem of curtis stone it's a huge significance to them both economically and so they say culturally but again it's massively diverse and it's ethnic makeup you have shia turkmen you have arabs you have a syrians you have kurds there and what's vitally important as well and it obviously brings a lot of bells with the baghdad government when they talk about this referendum potentially jeopardizing the fight against eisel south of kirkuk in the area. the battle against eisel continues there's been an offensive this being launched in the last few days the kurdish peshmerga say they want to be part of that offensive so you

controversial referendum on kurdish independence the iraqi parliament has voted to remove the governor of kirkuk from office of the province voted to take part in the september the twenty fifth referendum iraq's prime minister body has been authorized by to quote take all measures to preserve national unity. and has more on the day's events in iraq. southern iraq has been spared much of the violence that the rest of the country has seemed to in the west and in the north and now this attack took place just after lunchtime gunmen attacked the checkpoint which leads into southern iraq and then two suicide car bombs exploded outside a restaurant full of taurus the death toll currently stands at fifty we are expecting that to rise the health ministry said there are a number of people with very serious injuries now iraq as i say has been spared much of the violence and eisel have claimed responsibility for this particular attack now they do claim responsibility for a number of attacks not just here but abroad as well but it is likely to be an isolated attack this is a message really from the group say

one source of tension is the disputed territory of kirkuk which the kurds say belongs to them but is also claimed by iraq the kurds have been clear that the referendum will take place in kirkuk and have sent troops to the city but the local iraqi shia led militia says any ballot box will be seen as an act of aggression the international community also reacted brett mcgurk who is the u.s. special representative to the coalition said that this referendum would not be supported by the u.s. on the iraqis and the kurds needed to get together and concentrate on the fight against and that's also a view echoed by the british foreign office. across the kurdish region flags at. and waving and nationalism amongst this distinct ethnic group is the fever pitch ordinary kurds and their leaders see this referendum as their migrant a charge for self-determination and their own nation state something they've been striving for for naming a century however some party say the time is not now but they may back the popular movement that seems to be on track to hold the referendum despite the objections of

but there are possible flashpoints, like the oil—rich city of kirkuk.e city is multi ethnic, it's controlled by the kurds, but also claimed by the government in baghdad. arab leaders in kirkuk say their community won't accept the referendum results and is increasingly fearful. translation: a lot of people are taking their valables away for safe keeping, whether it's expensive cars or large sums of cash. everyone wa nts to or large sums of cash. everyone wants to protect themselves. people have started to stockpile food. they are very afraid of what is coming. but at the pressure merger front—line they are poised for victory after their long battle for freedom. veterans here fought the iraqis in the past and lately the so—called islamic state. iraqis in the past and lately the so-called islamic state. this area was under control of isis. commander kemal kirkuki said they are in position a mile away. he said the kurds will remain foe kissed on the enemy. we make a decision to continue fighting against isis until they will be finished in the area because t

all revenues of the regional government come from rich oil reserves which rival many countries the kirkuk fields as one of the largest oil fields worldwide. what's more the kurds are also sitting on other valuable natural resources the region has large deposits of iron copper chrome gold and platinum so the government in baghdad is fearful of a strong kurdistan neighboring countries are putting on the pressure to iran and turkey fear that the kurdish minorities in their countries would want to join the newly formed kurdish nation. we have to prevent the iraqi kurdish regional government from making even more serious mistakes it's important that the international community take sides with iraq's territorial integrity and political unity. and the iraqi government has refused to negotiate the results of the referendum but the kurds get more confident with every passing day. and that wraps up our business update thanks for watching have a great weekend. the nationalists are on the rise with worldwide to make your contract great again that is their slogan their focus put your nation first i am

minority kurds want to break away with other territory like the oil rich region near the city of kirkuk to form an independent state. baghdad has called the vote unconstitutional. iraq's prime minister the body has said international flights to the kurdish region would be suspended and vowed to keep iraq from breaking apart. they took advantage of the situation and violated the constitution i don't want to say that we will use force we'll use our heads and respect the constitution if they respond to this then it's fine and therefore today i demand that they return all the areas they recaptured from the islamic state it's what parliament decided. by. iraq's neighbors have rejected the referendum turkey has been holding joint military exercises along its border with the kurdish region and threatened to block kurdistan's oil exports . several airlines are stopping flights to northern iraq at baghdad's request. the non-binding vote is unlikely to lead to independence anytime soon. but that has not dampened the mood across the kurdish region. let's go to iraqi kurdistan then where we find t.

all revenues of the regional government come from rich oil reserves which rival many countries the kirkuk fields as one of the largest oil fields worldwide. what's more the kurds are also sitting on other valuable natural resources the region has large deposits of iron copper chrome gold and platinum so the government in baghdad is fearful of a strong kurdistan neighboring countries are putting on the pressure to iran and turkey fear that the kurdish minorities in their countries would want to join the newly formed kurdish nation. we have to prevent the iraqi kurdish regional government from making even more serious mistakes it's important that the international community sides with iraq's territorial integrity and political unity. the iraqi government has refused to negotiate the results of the referendum but the kurds get more confident with every passing day. back till now and tragedy in india that in fact at least twenty two people have died in a stampede and here the accident happened during morning rush hour in mumbai a foot bridge connecting to roll way stations the bridge was repo

controversial referendum on kurdish independence the iraqi parliament has voted to remove the governor of kirkuk from office after the province voted to take part in the september the twenty fifth. iraq's prime minister had our body has been authorized by parliament to quote take all measures to preserve national unity zero as iraq can is an appeal and has more on the day's events in iraq. southern iraq has been spared much of the violence that the rest of the country has seemed to in the west and in the north and now this attack took place just after lunchtime gunmen attacked the checkpoint which leads into southern iraq and then two suicide car bombs exploded outside a restaurant full of taurus the death toll currently stands at fifty we are expecting that to rise the health ministry said there are a number of people with very serious injuries now iraq as i say has been spared much of the violence and i still have claimed responsibility for this particular attack now they do claim responsibility for a number of attacks not just here but abroad as well but it is likely to be an isolated attack

continue and from both sides iraq to me is that at that i still is still occupying some parts of kirkuk and some parts of iraq i still is still a threat to the cities with some of our brothers in iraqi kurdistan a living we must not divide iraq according to or through all viral referendum that is completely rejected such language will go down well with the international community including the u.s. and the e.u. each sent the timing of the vote could weaken iraq's unity at a time when the fight against terrorism is paramount. ela bhatt he says the kurdish referendum on independence was unconstitutional and the federal government will ignore the expected yes result only a few minutes after all about his speech the kayleigh g president appeared on kurdish television masoud barzani invited leaders of neighboring countries for dialogue but he remained defiant he said the wishes of iraq's kurds should be respected but. yes in the beginning we agreed on the constitution and partnership and the role of the kurdistan region in the establishment of iraq is very clear but you violated every agreem

to take all forces have started to advance on the group strongholds of hawaii in the province of kirkuk they're planning to clear the land in villages on the outskirts of the time before recapturing the main central area. has more now from iraq's kurdish region. this offensive was a long time in the coming and finally prime minister body and nouns it's beginning . some have argued that how we should have been dealt with before the mosul offensive as there's a sizeable number of fighters there estimated between one thousand five hundred to two thousand and that how we've had this script has actually acted as a rear base for the fighters somewhere where they could have retreated safely now their defensive today started from two axes the northwest and the southwest of that dress trick the south this is quite important because it's a different of the hungry mountains the hammerin mountains have been also part of it. by the fighters which used it as a corridor to reach central iraq from there it's a really a straight line for example the. refinery if you recall they had taken over the refine