Kurds, Iraqi forces in standoff in oil-rich Kirkuk

Thousands of Iraqi troops were locked in an armed standoff with Kurdish forces in the disputed oil-rich province of Kirkuk as Washington scrambled to avert fighting between its allies in the war against the Islamic State group. The Kurds said Saturday that Baghdad had set a deadline for their forces to surrender positions they took during the fightback against the jihadists over the past three years. On Saturday, armoured vehicles bearing the Iraqi national flag were posted on the bank of a river on the southern outskirts of the city of Kirkuk, an AFP photographer reported.

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