Iraqi Federal Court nullifies 'unconstitutional' Kurdish referendum

Nov. 20 (UPI) -- The Iraqi Federal Court ruled the Kurdish independence referendum as "unconstitutional" on Monday, officially making the results as null and void.

Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said the ruling was made "unilaterally and without the presence of Kurdish representatives."

"The rights of Kurds are enshrined in the constitution, and we seek the implementation of this constitution to resolve our issues with Baghdad," Barzani said.

"The Iraqi Federal Court's ruling is supporting the Iraqi government's steps to implement the state authorities and not deal with the referendum process," the Iraqi Prime Minister's office said in a statement.

The federal court is responsible for settling disputes between Iraq's central government and regions of the country including Kurdistan.

The ruling cannot be appealed.

Kurds voted on Sept. 25 to break away from Iraq -- the vote was deemed "illegal" by Baghdad officials.

An estimated 93 percent of voters voted 'Yes' to separate from Iraq, with nearly 3.3 million voters turning out to vote.