Iraq’s military has seized 2 major oil fields outside the disputed city of Kirkuk from Kurdish forces, the military said in a statement on October 16, 2017.
The federal forces are now in control of the North Oil Company and Baba Gurgur fields.
Iraqi forces advanced on Kirkuk overnight on Monday, clashing with Kurdish forces on the outskirts.
The Kurds and the central government have long been divided over the sharing of revenues from the oil fields outside Kirkuk.
The fighting comes amid soaring tensions after the Kurds voted for independence in a non-binding referendum rejected as unconstitutional by Baghdad.
The Kurds assumed control of Kirkuk, in the heart of a major oil-producing region, in the summer of 2014, when IS militants swept across northern Iraq and the country’s armed forces crumbled.
The Kurdish security council said the assault launched late on Sunday was aimed at entering the city and retaking the K-1 military base and nearby oil fields.
Earlier, a spokesman for North Oil Company said the oil ministry had warned the Kurdish authorities against any action «that would cause crude oil flow disruption from Kirkuk oilfield.»