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Monday, September 18, 2017

Iraq Supreme Court Orders Suspension of Kurdistan Referendum Monday Sep 18,2017





Iraq's supreme court on Monday Sep 18,2017 ordered the suspension of a September 25,2017  referendum on the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan, to examine whether such a poll would be constitutional.



"The supreme court has issued the order to suspend organising the referendum set for September 25... until it examines the complaints it has received over this plebiscite being unconstitutional," it said in a statement.




The court took the decision after it "reviewed requests to stop the referendum", the statement said.

Court spokesman Ayas al-Samouk, told AFP: "We have received several complaints and this is why we decided to suspend the referendum."

A source in parliament said at least three lawmakers had filed complaints against the poll.

Neighbours Turkey and Iran, as well as the United States and United Nations, have pleaded for the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq to settle its differences with Baghdad through negotiations rather than secession.

Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani has said a "yes" vote would not trigger an immediate declaration of independence but rather kick-start "serious discussions" with Baghdad

Note

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which governs the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, plans to hold an independence referendum on September 25, 2017. While the vote, which is likely to result in favour of independence, is nonbinding, it will give the Kurdish government more ground to demand a separate statehood in northern Iraq.
The KRG is recognised in Iraq's constitution as the official authority of the provinces of Duhok, Erbil, Sulaimaniya and Halabja (which was carved out of Sulaimaniya in 2014). It has its own parliament, based in the capital city of Erbil, and military forces, known as the as the Peshmerga. KRG's budget is allocated by Iraq's federal government.

The Iraqi government and several other countries, including the United States and Turkey, have opposed the referendum

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