ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A delegation from the Kurdish blocs in the Iraqi parliament visited villages northwest of Kirkuk province on Tuesday to express solidarity with Kurdish farmers who were forcibly prevented from accessing their confiscated lands the previous day.
The delegation included representatives from the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Islamic Union, the Justice Group, the Kurdistan Communist Party, and the New Generation blocs in the Iraqi Parliament.
“We strongly condemn the unjustified attack on Kurdish farmers in Shinagha [village] and Sargaran [subdistrict] yesterday by a group of Iraqi army personnel, who prevented them from cultivating their lands, which they inherited from their ancestors,” the Kurdish lawmakers told reporters on Tuesday.
Tensions in the regions northwest of Kirkuk escalated on Monday when Iraqi security forces blocked Kurdish farmers from accessing their farmland. Raw footage filmed by Rudaw showed Iraqi army and anti-riot forces clashing with civilians. In one instance, an Iraqi security officer is seen attempting to forcibly remove a local from his tractor.
The lawmakers emphasized that the forced prevention of Kurdish farmers from entering their lands “is a clear violation of the [Iraqi] constitution, applicable laws, and human rights standards.”
The clashes come despite advancements in Iraq’s legislature, including the passage of the Property Restitution Law last month, which notably went into effect on Tuesday.
The law aims to return lands seized during the Baath era in Kirkuk and other disputed areas to their original Kurdish and Turkmen owners. These lands were previously given to Arab settlers, a tactic believed to have been part of the Baathist regime’s efforts to alter the demographic makeup of disputed regions.
The lawmakers argued that the actions of the Iraqi forces contradict the recently-passed land restitution law, which guarantees citizens the right to work on their lands without restrictions.
The Kurdish blocs also called on the Iraqi political forces to take a “clear and firm position” on these violations and to address the incident responsibly, stressing that such violations “pose a direct threat to peace and societal stability in Kirkuk.” They also emphasized that they would resort to all constitutional and legal means to follow up on this issue.
This is not the first such incident. In November, Iraqi armed forces also blocked farmers from preparing their fields for the winter season. At that time, Kurdish farmers accused Arab settlers of preventing them from accessing their lands.
