2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum

Kurdistan Region independence referendum
25 September 2017 (2017-09-25)
"Do you want the Kurdistan Region and the Kurdistani areas outside the administration of the Region to become an independent state?"
Location of Kurdistan Region in Iraq in September 2017.
  Recognized territory of the Kurdistan Region where the referendum was held
  Disputed territory of the Kurdistan Region where the referendum was held; Iraq recaptured much of this territory after the referendum
  Rest of Iraq
Outcome
Results
Choice
 Votes %
Yes 2,861,471 92.73%
No 224,464 7.27%
Valid votes 3,085,935 93.35%
Invalid or blank votes 219,990 6.65%
Total votes 3,305,925 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 4,581,255 72.16%
KHEC

An independence referendum for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq was held on 25 September 2017 in Kurdistan Region, with preliminary results showing approximately 92.73 percent of votes cast in favour of independence. Despite reporting that the independence referendum would be non-binding, the autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) characterised it as binding,[1][2][3][4] although they claimed that an affirmative result would trigger the start of state building and negotiations with Iraq rather than an immediate declaration of independence of Kurdistan.[5] The referendum's legality was rejected by the federal government of Iraq and the Federal Supreme Court. KRG eventually conceded and accepted the Supreme Court’s ruling that no Iraqi governorate is allowed to secede.[6]

It was originally planned to be held in 2014 amidst controversy and dispute between the regional and federal governments.[7] Calls for Kurdish independence had been going on for years, with an unofficial 2005 referendum resulting in 98.98% voting in favor of independence.[8] These longstanding calls gained impetus following the Northern Iraq offensive by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant during the Iraqi Civil War in which Baghdad-controlled forces abandoned some areas, which were then taken by the Peshmerga and controlled de facto by the Kurds.

The referendum was announced and delayed on several occasions[9][10] as Kurdish forces co-operated with the Iraqi central government for the liberation of Mosul,[11] but by April 2017, it was being seen as happening some time in 2017.[12] On 7 June 2017, Kurdish President Masoud Barzani held a meeting with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and other ruling parties, where the independence referendum was confirmed to be held on 25 September 2017.[13]

The referendum led to a military conflict with the Iraqi central government, in which the KRG lost 20 percent of its territory and its main source of revenue,[14] the Kirkuk oil fields. Following the loss, Kurdistan Region president Masoud Barzani resigned and the referendum was thus effectively abandoned.

  1. ^ "Kurdish Referendum". Yekta Uzunoglu. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  2. ^ "Masoud Barzani: Why It's Time For Kurdish Independence". Foreign Policy. 15 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Senior Kurdish Official Says Kurdistan Independence Referendum Going Ahead Despite Opposition". ARA News. 26 July 2017. Archived from the original on 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  4. ^ "Turkey warns Iraqi Kurdish referendum will 'have a cost'". Al Arabiya. 14 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Iraqi Kurds accept court decision banning secession". Middle East Eye.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference planned was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Kurdistan Referendum Movement – International Committee (8 February 2005). "98 percent of the people of South Kurdistan vote for independence". KurdMedia.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference postpone was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference nonbinding was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference after liberation was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference will 2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ "UPDATES: Kurdistan Region to hold independence referendum on Sept 25". Rudaw. 7 June 2017. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
  14. ^ "PUK's latest statement on the attacks against Kirkuk". ANF News. Archived from the original on 26 October 2017. Retrieved 26 October 2017.