"We would like to emphasize that the agreement between the federal government and KRG regarding the liberation of Nineveh is steady and unchanged, according to which the Peshmarga is fighting side by side with the federal military forces to drive Da'esh terrorism out of Nineveh. We point out that this agreement includes an explicit clause stating that Peshmarga withdraws to their previous stations soon after the liberation of Nineveh," the statement said.
Abadi’s office added that the affiliation of the disputed areas was bound by the constitution.
On Wednesday, during a visit to Peshmerga forces, Kurdistan's President Masoud Barzani declared that Kurdish forces would stay in the territories that were reclaimed from the Islamic State, under an arrangement with the United States and the Iraqi government.
On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi launched the operation to retake the city. The operation began with 4,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and 30,000 Iraqi soldiers backed by the US-led anti-terror coalition.
