Shafaq News / The Prime Minister of Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) , Masrour Barzani issued a statement on Sunday regarding the attack by gunmen in Khanaqin district last night.

"With great regret, a number of Kakai brothers and sisters were martyred and others were wounded during the terrorist’s attack on Dara and Mikhas villages, belonging to Khanaqin district," Barzani said in a statement reported to Shafaq News Agency.

"As we express our deep concern about the deteriorating situation and instability in these areas, we stress at the same time the necessity of activating a security coordination mechanism between KRG and the federal government in Baghdad as well as the importance of the presence of   Peshmerga forces in these areas, in order to achieve cooperation and coordination with the Iraqi army to restore stability and protect the money and property of its residents.

Peshmerga Ministry has also condemned the attack by Islamic State (ISIS) organization on a village of Kakai Kurds in the disputed Khanaqin district between Erbil and Baghdad, which left 12 casualties.

“An armed group attacked Dara village affiliated to Khanaqin District yesterday’s night, killing seven people of a Kurdish Kakai family and wounding five others,” The ministry said in a statement today.

In its statement, the ministry called on the Iraqi forces in those borders to protect the lives and property of innocent people without any national or religious discrimination.

The statement stressed that during the last period, we warned many times from the absence of Peshmerga forces in those areas and the dangers of the security vacuum between Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army.

The situation requires activating a joint higher committee from the Iraqi Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Peshmerga to fill the security gaps in a way that protects the lives and property of citizens with its Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen and all religious components.

The statement pointed out that by targeting the Kurds in those areas and evicting the Kurdish villages by force, crimes and killing is the terrorist groups’ action only that wants to evict the Kurds from the region and continue the Arabization and displacement operations in it.

The statement clarified, therefore, we assure all parties that Peshmerga forces have a duty to prevent the terrorists ’dream against the citizens, and we will respond violently to any terrorist attempt.

Khanaqin city is witnessing a clear rise in the rates of security breaches, which became almost daily after the withdrawal of Peshmerga forces 2017, which were deployed in the region and controlled it in terms of security before their withdrawal in front of the progress of the Iraqi forces.