ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The governor of Salahaddin has appointed Kurdish engineer Hiwa Ghalib Majid as acting mayor of Tuz Khurmatu, a disputed district between Erbil and Baghdad, following the sacking of the former mayor over corruption allegations, a local councilor told Rudaw on Thursday.
Yassin Dawoodi, a member of the Salahaddin provincial council representing Tuz Khurmatu district, told Rudaw on Thursday that Majid, a Kurdish engineer, has been appointed as the new mayor of Tuz Khurmatu district in Salahaddin province.
According to a document seen by Rudaw, Salahaddin Governor Badr al-Fahl sacked Tuz Khurmatu Mayor Mar’i Rashid Samin and replaced him with Majid.
Samin and Majid are PUK members.
This marks the first time a Kurd has held the position since the federal government took control of the district in 2017, following clashes with Kurdish Peshmerga forces sparked by the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum, which included disputed areas such as Tuz Khurmatu.
Samin was initially suspended for 60 days pending the outcome of an investigation.
Tuz Khurmatu is an ethnically mixed district home to Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen.
Dawoodi, a PUK member, is the only Kurd in the 15-member Salahaddin provincial council.
