Amid controversy, Kirkuk Provincial Council chairman to begin duties on Sunday

Shafaq News/ Kirkuk Provincial Council announced that its newly elected chairman, Mohammed Ibrahim Hafiz, will commence his duties on Sunday at the provincial council headquarters.

Imad al-Amiri, the council's media spokesperson, told Shafaq News Agency, "After the chairman begins his duties, the council will determine the work mechanisms. The date for the third session has not yet been set, as the matters to be discussed in the session by council members are dependent on the chairman's commencement of duties."

On August 10, the Kirkuk Provincial Council elected Rebwar Taha as governor and Mohammed Ibrahim Hafiz as the chairman in Baghdad.

Prior to the meeting held in Baghdad, three blocs – the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Arab Coalition, and the Turkmen Front – separately announced their boycott of the session. They declared that the council meeting, which resulted in the selection of the local government head and the president of the Kirkuk Provincial Council, was illegal, asserting that they had not been invited to attend the session.