Qassem Soleimani Had 'Strongly Warned' Kurds Before Leaving Kirkuk

Sources close to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan say that Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, played a significant role in forcing the Kurds to leave Kirkuk during his visit to northern Iraq, which contributed to the control of this region by Iraqi forces. According to reports published by Reuters and the Associated Press, Qassem Soleimani met with leaders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in Sulaymaniyah at least three times and strongly warned them to either leave the city of Kirkuk or lose Tehran's support. The last of his visits occurred one day before Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's order for Iraqi forces and Shiite militia Hashd al-Shaabi to advance towards Kirkuk. This city and its surrounding areas fell into the hands of the central Iraqi government almost bloodlessly last week. As reported, the Quds Force commander told leaders of the Patriotic Union - the rival faction of the Kurdistan Democratic Party led by Masoud Barzani - that the Peshmerga forces were unable to confront the Iraqi army, which has the support of the West, Iran, and Turkey. Reuters adds that Qassem Soleimani reminded Kurdish lawmakers of the severe repression of Kurdish rebels by Saddam Hussein in 1991. One representative of the Patriotic Union in the Kurdistan Parliament stated, 'Soleimani's visit... was to give the decision-makers one last chance to avoid making a terrible mistake.' Ms. Ala Talabani, an official of the Patriotic Union, said that this high-ranking Iranian military official limited his discussions with Kurdish leaders to what he called 'wise' advice. She told the Arabic-language television channel 'Al-Hadath': 'Soleimani advised us... that Kirkuk should be returned based on regulations and the constitution, so it is better to understand this issue.' Kurdish Peshmerga commanders have accused the Islamic Republic of Iran of directing the central Iraqi government forces and the Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) militias it supports to regain control of Kirkuk and other Kurdish-held areas. These areas were under the control of the Iraqi government until the large-scale invasion of the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014. Iranian officials, including Ali Akbar Velayati, advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, have denied these accusations. He stated on October 17 that 'the IRGC has no role in the Kirkuk operation and... we saw that the area was handed over to the Baghdad government almost without conflict, and Mr. Barzani must accept that he made a mistake and acknowledge it and seek to rectify it.' According to Reuters, an Iranian official close to President Hassan Rouhani, whose name was not disclosed, stated that the Kurdish leaders' move to hold an independence referendum raised concerns in Tehran that Baghdad would permanently lose control of the disputed oil wells around Kirkuk. Tehran is also worried that the referendum held on October 25 in the Kurdistan Region, where over 92% voted for independence from Iraq, could lead to separatist tendencies in Kurdish areas of Iran. Turkey has also expressed similar concerns and, along with Iran, threatened to impose severe sanctions against Iraqi Kurdistan. Haider al-Abadi has rejected the holding of this referendum and its results, calling for its annulment. In this context, government offices in Kirkuk were seized by Iraqi forces, the advisor to Khamenei denied the role and presence of the IRGC in the Kirkuk operation, Kurdish Peshmerga forces retreated from the cities of Sinjar and Khanqin, Barzani stated that individual and unilateral decisions were the cause of the Kirkuk events, Turkey stated that Iraqi Kurdish leaders did not heed the recommendations and made a miscalculation, officials from the Kurdistan Region reported that 100,000 people have fled Kirkuk, the Iranian consulate in Erbil stated that it is neutral in the dispute between the Kurdistan Region and the Iraqi government, the Iraqi army removed the last section of Kirkuk province from Kurdish control, a representative of Ayatollah Sistani urged the Iraqi government to protect the Kurdish people, and Netanyahu called on world leaders to prevent the weakening of the Kurds in Iraq.