BAGHDAD, Oct. 29 -- The President of the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan Masoud Barzani on Sunday told a closed-door session of parliament that he was stepping down from his post on Nov. 1, local media reported.
"I refuse to continue the position of president of the Kurdish region after Nov. 1," Rudaw Kurdish media said, quoting a letter sent by Barzani to the regional parliament session held in the regional capital Erbil.
"Changing the law on the presidency of Kurdistan or prolonging the presidential term is not acceptable," Barzani said.
He said that a meeting must be held as soon as possible so that "there will be no legal vacuum in the duties of the president of the region."
However, Barzani pledged to continue his long mission as a Peshmerga "to sacrifice and struggle for the rights and demands of our people as well as preserve the achievements of our people," the letter read.
Barzani set Nov. 1 as the date for stepping down and asked the parliament to vote on distributing the legal, military and administrative powers of the president to the regional government, parliament and the judiciary.
The parliament continued its session after Barzani's letter and voted in favor of choosing the current regional Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani for Commander-in-Chief of Kurdish regional forces.
Masoud Barzani's president post has sparked controversy, as his tenure was originally expired in 2013, but the Kurdish parliament extended his term to August 2017, but because of the blitzkrieg, or lighting war, of the Islamic State (IS), Barzani remained in office.
The Kurdish parliament initially set Nov. 1 a date for parliamentary and presidential elections in Kurdistan region and the ethnically mixed disputed areas claimed by both Baghdad and the Kurds. However, on Oct. 24, the parliament postponed the regional presidential and parliamentary elections for eight months after the Iraqi security forces took control of the oil-rich Kirkuk province and most of the disputed areas.
During the session, dozens of angry protestors, loyal to Barzani, broke into the parliament building and attacked journalists who were covering the parliament session at the entrance of the building.
The protestors told Rudaw that they are there to demand an apology from the lawmaker Rabun Maroof from the opposition Gorran parliamentary bloc, who was accused by the protestors of insulting the Peshmerga and President Masoud Barzani.
The chaos came under control after riot police intervened and bullets were heard as they drove out the protestors.
Barzani, 71, a veteran Kurdish leader, took over the post of president of the regional government in 2005. However, Barzani's post has sparked controversy, as his tenure expired on Aug. 19, 2017. He is also leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party since 1979.
On Oct. 16, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also Commander-in-Chief of Iraqi forces, ordered government forces to enter the oil-rich Kirkuk province in northern Iraq to regain control of the ethnically-mixed disputed areas.
The Kurds consider the northern Kirkuk province and parts of Nineveh, Diyala and Salahudin provinces as disputed areas and want them to be incorporated into their region, a move fiercely opposed by the Arabs and Turkmens in the region as well as the Iraqi central government.
Tensions have been running high between Baghdad and the region of Kurdistan after the Kurds held a controversial referendum on the independence of the Kurdistan region and the disputed areas.
体坛英语资讯:British rider Froome wins fourth Tour de France title
国内英语资讯:Chinese FM to visit Thailand, Philippines
体坛英语资讯:Kononenko from Ukraines Kolss Team wins 7th stage of Tour of Qinghai Lake
美国德州卡车人口走私案9人死亡
国际英语资讯:Israeli forces detain 32 Palestinians in West Bank
公交车上到底该不该让座?英国人也在为此争执不休
去国外点餐你还在土鳖地用手指着说this和that吗?
体坛英语资讯:Xu Jiayu wins Chinese male swimmers first backstroke title at World Championships
体坛英语资讯:Five champion teams to compete in Chinas Wefang Cup soccer tournament
欧盟追加援助帮助意大利应对移民潮
国内英语资讯:Chinese netizens mourn Linkin Parks Chester Bennington
国内英语资讯:China establishes green manufacturing alliance
体坛英语资讯:Yao Ming: No time to consider buying Houston Rockets
国内英语资讯:Beijing police hunt for attacker after fatal hit-and-run
国内英语资讯:China renews blue alert for typhoon Sonca
国内英语资讯:First China-U.S. Comprehensive Economic Dialogue sees some positive outcomes
体坛英语资讯:China loses to Germany, misses Stankovic Cup final
国际英语资讯:Interview: Britain may never actually leave EU: political expert
国际英语资讯:Death toll raises to 9 in Texas trailer incident, all adult males: official
国家版权局:突出整治影视和资讯作品版权问题
国际英语资讯:1 killed, 2 injured in shooting at Israeli embassy in Jordan
体坛英语资讯:Bolt wins with seasons best, China wins 4x100m relay in IAAF Diamond League Monaco meet
国际英语资讯:Philippine govt to intensify offensive to quell IS terrorists: military
国内英语资讯:Former Party chief of Liaoning stands trial for graft
体坛英语资讯:NHL may not release players for 2022 Winter Olympics, says NHL vice president
体坛英语资讯:ASEAN Jubilee Friendship Game held in Vietnam
国际英语资讯:Spotlight: U.S. sanctions bill to bring more uncertainties on ties with Russia, Iran, DPRK
有时候,快乐不必舍近求远
辽宁省抚顺市2016-2017学年高二下学期期末考试英语试卷
体坛英语资讯:Brazilian Cunha wins womens 25km open water race at FINA Worlds