Subscribe 

Abadi says Iraq to act soon over border areas in stand-off with Kurds

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, seeking to up the pressure in a stand-off with Iraq’s Kurdish region, said on Tuesday he would act soon over border areas under Kurdish control but predicted his government’s forces would regain them without violence. The central government in Baghdad has cracked down hard on the Kurds since the government of […]

Ahmed Rasheed and Raya Jalabi write for Reuters:

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, seeking to up the pressure in a stand-off with Iraq’s Kurdish region, said on Tuesday he would act soon over border areas under Kurdish control but predicted his government’s forces would regain them without violence.

The central government in Baghdad has cracked down hard on the Kurds since the government of the Kurdish autonomous region staged an independence referendum on Sept. 25 that Baghdad considers illegal.

“We will regain control on border areas without escalation. But our patience will run out. We will not wait forever. We will take action,” Abadi said at a news conference.