Iraqi court upholds removal of Kirkuk’s Kurdish governor
Governor of Kirkuk, Najmaddin Karim.
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) A top Iraqi court upheld on Wednesday a decision by the Iraqi parliament to remove the governor of Kirkuk, turning down the official’s challenge to the measure.
The Administrative Court backed the removal of Najmuddin Karim, a member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.
On September 26th, Najm al-Din Karim filed a challenge to a decision by the Iraqi parliament on September 14th to remove him from office.
The parliament ousted Karim over his blatant support for holding a referendum on the autonomous Kurdistan Region’s independence from Iraq.
Kurdish authorities said 92 of voters backed independence during the poll held on September 25th.
Karim had defied the parliament’s decision and insisted to maintain office.
Oil-rich Kirkuk is one of a few regions where Baghdad and Erbil dispute sovereignty.
Earlier this week, Baghdad appointed Rakan al-Jubouri as a new governor as Iraqi forces took over Kirkuk from Kurdish troops. Iraq’s military command said Tuesday it had consummated the recapture of disputed areas in Kirkuk, Nineveh and Diyala, including main oil fields, military bases and government facilities. The deployment in those regions came as an Iraqi government response to the Kurdish referendum which Baghdad deems unconstitutional.