Iraqi military dispatched to Kirkuk

ERBIL, Iraq, July 31 (UPI) -- Iraqi national troops have deployed to the restive northern city of Kirkuk amid outcries from several Kurdish lawmakers, officials say.

The Iraqi federal government in Baghdad dispatched military forces to the oil-rich city to calm potential conflicts in the ethnically diverse region, the daily Iraqi newspaper Azzaman reported. Meanwhile, forces continue to round up militiamen in the eastern Diyala province.

On Monday, a suicide bomber killed at least 22 people and injured 150 others during demonstrations organized in Kirkuk by Kurdish factions. Gunmen later opened fire on the offices of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, which opposes Kurdish dominance in the region.

Kirkuk is an ethnically diverse city with vast oil resources. It also serves as the primary transport route for oil exports to Turkey. The Kurdish Regional Government wants jurisdiction over Kirkuk, but Arab and Iraqi Turkmen officials oppose the measure.

Observers say disputes among the various factions in the north may spill over to encompass the rest of the region. At the same time, Kurdish lawmakers dispute the presence of Iraqi forces in their community.

Razkar Ali, a lawmaker in the Kirkuk provincial council, has consequently lodged a formal complaint with Baghdad calling for the withdrawal of Iraqi national forces.