Iraq PM rejects Kurdistan call for self-rule

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has rejected an attempt by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to hold an independence referendum, saying the move is unconstitutional.

Maliki issued a warning Wednesday to the Kurdistan Regional Government that its attempt to hold an independence vote will “damage them a lot.”

The Iraqi premier has emphasized that the KRG is part of Iraq and must act within the boundaries of the country’s constitution.

“No one has the right to exploit the events that took place to impose a fait accompli, as happened in some of the actions of the Kurdistan region. This is rejected,” Al-Maliki said in a televised address, adding that no one is allowed to take advantage of the current crisis in order to reap their own benefits.

The priority for everyone remains to be the country’s security and territorial integrity, the Iraqi premier said.

His statements follow remarks made by the president of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government, Masoud Barzani, who has said that measures are being taken for holding a referendum on Kurdistan’s future within months.

The referendum on Kurdish independence has been also supported by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Militants from the Takfiri terrorist group, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), have attacked Iraq’s northern provinces with the aim of capturing the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

According to informed sources, decision-making meetings for the attack were held inside Turkey and, in addition to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the US, England and Barzani were privy to the plan for partitioning Iraq.

The crisis in Iraq escalated after the ISIL militants took control of Mosul on June 10, which was followed by the fall of Tikrit, located 140 kilometers (87 miles) northwest of Baghdad.