Iraqi forces seized a key military base, an airport and an oil field from Kurdish fighters on Monday in disputed Kirkuk Province in a major operation sparked by a controversial independence referendum.
The rapid advance, which follows weeks of soaring tensions between two U.S. allies in the battle against the Islamic State (IS) group, aims to retake oil and military sites that Kurdish forces took over during the fightback against the jihadists.
The U.S.-led coalition against IS urged the two sides to “avoid escalatory actions” and to focus on fighting the extremists, who are on the verge of losing their last strongholds in Iraq.
Thousands of residents were seen fleeing Kurdish districts of Kirkuk city. At the same time, crowds on the streets of Kirkuk’s southern outskirts welcomed Iraqi forces as they entered the city. Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga forces exchanged artillery fire early on Monday south of the capital of the oil-rich Province, after the launch of the operation on Sunday night.
A Kurdish health official said at least 10 peshmerga fighters were killed and 27 wounded during fighting overnight, but there was no confirmation of the toll from the Kurdish government.
The rapid progress of Iraqi forces suggested that Kurdish fighters were withdrawing with little or no resistance in many areas.
Iraq’s Joint Operations Command said its forces had retaken the K1 military base northwest of Kirkuk, the military airport east of the city and the Baba Gargar oil field, one of six in the disputed region.
