Iraqi and Kurdish prime ministers discuss election tensions in Kirkuk
Tens of Kurdish residents of disputed Kirkuk were arrested and later released after celebrating the victory of Kurdish parties in the election.
The heads of the Kurdistan Region and federal governments in Iraq attempted on Wednesday to defuse election tensions in the disputed city of Kirkuk.
On Monday night, tens of Kurdish youth in Kirkuk celebrated in the streets after the preliminary results from the Iraqi election were released. The Kurdish parties won six of the 12 seats in the city, which also has sizable Arab and Turkmen communities. Police accused the group of damaging property, and security forces allegedly dispatched a convoy of military trucks to break up the celebrations. They also arrested tens of Kurdish residents, the Kurdish news outlet Rudaw reported.
Then on Tuesday night, more Kurdish residents were detained after people allegedly threw water bottles at security forces while they were dispersing another election celebration, the Kurdish news agency NRT reported.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani talked over the situation in a call Wednesday.
