Kirkuk’s Daquq Court of Appeal has issued a final decision to return the ownership over 800 acres of land to Kurdish farmers.
Shikar Mardan, a lawyer for agricultural land in Daquq and a member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Legal Center told KurdSat English, "after 2017 resettled Arabs have tried to occupy agricultural lands belonging Kurds in Kirkuk." Kurds demanded the return of their land, and took the case to Kirkuk and Baghdad courts.
The lawyer explained that they had provided enough evidence to the courts and proved that their ownership belonged to the Kurds, leading the Daquq Court of Appeal to rule in favor of the Kurds and return their property.
On November 2, the same court in Daquq passed a decision to resort ownership of over 1300 acres of land back to their owners, with Baghdad’s Rasafa Court of Appeal ruling a return of 837 agricultural lands to Kurds in Kirkuk.
Kurdish, Turkmen, and Arab farmers dispute over 300 hectares of farmlands in Kirkuk’s southern Laylan subdistrict, most of which remain unsettled and are a source of contention between the different minority groups.
Since the 2017 Kurdistan region referendum, Arabs and other minorities have tried to occupy land farmed by Kurds in the disputed territories; however, efforts by the PUK have led to restoring their rights and property. PUK’s efforts in reviving the long-dead High Committee for Implementing article 140 would settle most problems in the disputes between Erbil and Baghdad.