Members of Iraqi security forces gesture as a convoy advances on the outskirts of Mosul, to fight against the Daesh terror group militants in Kirkuk, Iraq, Wednesday (Reuters photo)

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi foreign ministry summoned the Turkish ambassador on Thursday to protest the continued presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq without Baghdad's permission, a ministry spokesman said.

Turkish troops are deployed in the Bashiqa area near the extremist-held city of Mosul, and Turkey's prime minister has said that they will stay despite Baghdad's demands that they be withdrawn.

The Turkish ambassador was given "a strongly worded formal note of protest" regarding "the continued presence of Turkish forces near Bashiqa and recent abusive statements from their leadership", spokesman Ahmed Jamal told AFP.

Earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi to "know your place", and said that he is "not on my level".

And Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said last week that the country's forces would stay "no matter what the Iraqi government in Baghdad says".

Abadi has repeatedly demanded that the Turkish troops be withdrawn and said that they will not take part in the impending operation to recapture Mosul from the Daesh terror group.

The US State Department issued a statement earlier this week that implicitly backed Iraq's position, saying that: "We believe all international forces in Iraq should be there with the approval of and in coordination with the government of Iraq."

Iraqi forces are preparing for the operation to retake Mosul from Daesh, which is expected to be the toughest and most complex battle of the country's more than two-year war against the extremists.

More than 7,000 military personnel from a US-led coalition are deployed in Iraq to support Baghdad's forces, but the coalition has repeatedly stated that the Turkish deployment is not part of its operations. </s> BAGHDAD — Tensions between Turkey and Iraq continued to escalate Wednesday as Iraq's prime minister rejected Turkish claims that their forces must be included in an operation to retake the militant-held city of Mosul.



"We will liberate our land through the determination of our men and not by video calls," Haider al-Abadi said late Tuesday night on his Twitter account, mocking the Turkish president's nationally broadcast video call to a TV journalist amid a failed coup attempt in July.

Earlier Tuesday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkish forces cannot be excluded from the long-awaited operation to retake Mosul, telling Iraq's al-Abadi to "know his place."

Turkey-Iraq relations became strained after Ankara sent troops late last year to the region of Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, to train anti-IS fighters there — a move Baghdad has since labeled a "blatant violation" of its sovereignty. Iraq has demanded a Turkish withdrawal, but Ankara has repeatedly ignored the call.

"You are not my interlocutor, you are not at my level, you are not my equivalent, you are not of the same quality as me," Erdogan said Tuesday, addressing Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in a speech delivered in Istanbul. "Your screaming and shouting in Iraq is of no importance to us. You should know that we will go our own way."

Iraq's powerful Shiite militias — one of the many groups expected to take part in the fight to retake Mosul — have also called for an immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops.

"We did not and will not allow the Turkish forces to violate Iraq's sovereignty," said Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the Badr Brigade, one of the most prominent Shiite militia groups. "We affirm, the Turks must withdraw their forces and if they insist on staying, they have no one to blame but themselves. The arrogance and vanity that we hear today in Erdogan's language, he will not only regret it but he will actually see it."

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The operation to retake Mosul is expected to be the most complex yet for Iraqi forces backed by U.S.-led coalition air power. Iraq's military is still rebuilding after nearly a third of its forces disintegrated when Mosul first fell to IS more than two years ago. Since then the extremists have been pushed from more than half of the territory they once held in Iraq, according to figures released by al-Abadi's office.

In Beirut, the leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah said the operation to retake Mosul risks pushing Islamic State militants into eastern Syria, calling that an American ploy of which the Iraqis should be wary.

Speaking Wednesday to a crowd during a religious ceremony south of Beirut, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, whose group is fighting in Syria alongside government forces, said "this American deception will put your victory in Mosul to waste."

He called on Iraqi leaders, including Shiite militias, to kill and imprison IS militants, denying them an escape route to Syria. Their presence in Syria, he said, will be a continuous threat to Iraq. </s> (IraqiNews.com) Baghdad – Foreign troops in Iraq should be there with the approval of the central government in Baghdad and under the umbrella of the anti-ISIS international coalition, the U.S. State Department said on Wednesday.

“It is imperative for all parties to coordinate closely over the coming days and weeks to ensure unity of effort in defeating ISIS, and to provide for the lasting security of the Iraqi people,” the State Department said.

Tension between Turkey and Iraq increased over the presence of about 2,000 Turkish troops at Bashiqa base north of Iraq, as Iraqi security forces backed by the international coalition troops prepare for an offensive on the ISIS-held city of Mosul.

Yesterday, tension escalated between the Turkish President and Iraqi Prime Minister, when Erdogan told Haider al-Abadi to know his limits, and added that Turkey would continue to do what is necessary in Iraq.

Meanwhile, Abadi responded to Erdogan’s remarks and said, “We are not your enemy, and we will liberate our land through the determination of our men and not by video calls.” </s> ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey can't be excluded from a possible operation to recapture the Iraqi city of Mosul, Turkey's president said Tuesday, telling Iraq's leader to "know his place."



Recep Tayyip Erdogan's remarks were likely to add to tensions between the two neighbors, which are key U.S. partners in the fight against the Islamic State group.



In a speech delivered in Istanbul, Erdogan also said Turkish troops wouldn't withdraw from a base near Mosul, saying the Turkish army wouldn't take orders from Baghdad. Turkey is training anti-IS fighters to help retake Mosul from the extremist group.



Turkey-Iraq relations became strained after Ankara sent troops late last year to the region of Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, to train anti-IS fighters there — a move Baghdad has since labeled a "blatant violation" of its sovereignty. Iraq has demanded a Turkish withdrawal, but Ankara has repeatedly ignored the call.



Turkish warnings about possible sectarian clashes in Mosul if the majority Sunni region were placed under Shiite militia control also have drawn Baghdad's ire. Last week, both countries summoned each other's ambassadors while Iraq requested an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council over the presence of unauthorized Turkish troops in northern Iraq.



Speaking to Muslim religious leaders from the Balkans and Central Asia, Erdogan said objections from Iraq wouldn't stop Turkey from participating in any operation to free Mosul and proceeded to make vitriolic remarks against Iraq's prime minister.



"You are not my interlocutor, you are not at my level, you are not my equivalent, you are not of the same quality as me," Erdogan said, addressing Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. "Your screaming and shouting in Iraq is of no importance to us. You should know that we will go our own way."



Erdogan also said Turkey wouldn't withdraw its troops from the base in Bashiqa, adding that it was al-Abadi himself who had asked Ankara to train fighters there back in 2014.



"Turkey's army hasn't lost enough of its quality to take orders from you," Erdogan said in response to Iraqi calls for the troop's withdrawal. "We would do whatever is necessary as we have done until today."



Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, meanwhile, again warned that any operation to free Mosul shouldn't lead to any demographic change. Turkish is worried that once Mosul is liberated from IS, Kurds or Shiite groups may take Mosul over and push out Sunni Arabs or ethnic Turkmens.



"We have explained to all of our friends that the operation planned for Mosul should be limited to removing Daesh," Yildirim said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.



"If you, after removing Daesh, attempt to change Mosul's demographic structure, you will light the fire of a very big civil war, of a sectarian war. This is our warning." </s> (IraqiNews.com) Baghdad – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, that Turkey will not take instructions from Iraq, Anadolu Agency reported.

In his speech to the 9th Eurasian Islamic Council in Istanbul, Erdogan told Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi not to cross the line, and added that the presence of Turkish Troops in Iraq is based on an Iraqi official demand.

Erdogan said, “Abadi himself had asked Turkey to form a military base in Bashiqa, northeast of the ISIS-held city of Mosul, during the term of former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu,” adding that, “We have live records of this and will broadcast it on television channels today or tomorrow.”

The Turkish President also explained that the Turkish army has not lost its standing and won’t take instructions from Abadi who is now calling Turkey to withdraw its troops from Iraq, while emphasized that Turkey would continue to do “what is necessary” in Iraq. </s> (IraqiNews.com) Nineveh – General Commander of Iraqi Armed forces and Prime Minister, Haider al-Abadi, announced on Monday launching the battle to liberate Mosul from the ISIS grip, and pointed out that the security forces that will participate in the battle are Iraqi army, police and national police.

Prime Minister Haider Abadi said in a speech on state TV, “I announce today the start of the heroic operations to free you from the terror and the oppression of Daesh (ISIS).”

“We will meet soon on the ground of Mosul to celebrate liberation and your salvation,” Abadi added.

Abadi also called the people of Mosul to cooperate with the security forces, and emphasized that the battle will be handled by the Iraqi army and national police only.

Nearly 65,000 military personnel including Iraqi soldiers, Kurdish Peshmerga militia and Sunni tribal fighters were expected to participate in the offensive to liberate the city of more than 5,000 ISIS militants. </s> Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced on Sunday "victory" over Islamic State in the city of Mosul, his office said.

"The commander in chief of the armed forces (Prime Minister) Haider al-Abadi arrived in the liberated city of Mosul and congratulated the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people for the great victory," said a statement from his office. </s> BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The Iraqi parliament on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to send troops to the Kurdish-held region of Kirkuk and take control of its oilfields.

Kurdish Pehsmerga fighters took control of Kirkuk, a multi-ethnic region, in 2014 when the Iraqi army fled in the face of Islamic State militants who overran about a third of Iraq.

 The Kurdish move prevented the oilfields from falling into the militants' hands. 

 The area, historically claimed by the Kurds, is also home to Turkmen and Arab communities. The Kurdistan Regional Government included it in the independence referendum held on Monday. 

 "The government has to bring back the oilfields of Kirkuk under the control of the oil ministry," said the resolution voted by parliament in Baghdad, seen by Reuters.

 It called on Abadi to "issue orders for the security forces to deploy in the disputed areas, including Kirkuk".

 

 

 (Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed, Writing by Maher Chmaytelli, Editing by Angus MacSwan) </s> BAGHDAD: Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi demanded on Wednesday that the Kurdish authorities "cancel" the outcome of the independence referendum they held in northern Iraq on Monday.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi rejects Turkey's claim that Turkish forces must be included in an operation to retake the militant-held city of Mosul.