Speaking to AlSumariya on Tuesday (July 31), Maan al-Hamdani, said the General Secretariat of the Iraqi Council of Ministers had ordered the suspension of all Talabani's powers.

The decision “obscures all his powers and prevents him from making decisions,” he added.

Meanwhile, another member of the council, Ahmed Askari, told NRT that the council has not yet been informed of the decision.

“If the Iraqi Council of Ministers made such decision, it would be illegal. We will refuse it because only the Kirkuk provincial council has the power to make such decisions,” he added.

The head of the Kirkuk Provincial Council left Kirkuk after Iraqi forces and the Hashid al-Shaabi retook the province from Kurdish forces in mid-October of 2017. Since then, he has lived in Erbil.

Reporter’s code: 50101