ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Hassan Turan, head of the Turkmen Front in Iraq, announced on Sunday that he is stepping down as the party’s leader.

“Today… I submitted my resignation as the leader of the Iraqi Turkmen Front,” Turan wrote in his resignation letter. "I promise all our Turkmen people to organize a campaign to defend our Turkmen cause, justice, and the unity of our country, Iraq, as well as our commitment to the principles of the Iraqi Turkmen Front."

As a coalition of several Turkmen political parties, the Iraqi Turkmen Front, the largest Turkmen organization, was founded in 1995.

The party’s key objective is to ensure greater political representation for the community in Iraq.

The party’s main support base is in Kirkuk province.

In the last provincial council elections in Kirkuk, the Turkmen Front secured two of the 16 available seats.

In his resignation letter, Turan stated that he will continue his political career to defend his community.

The New Region understands that Mehmet Semat, the current spokesperson of the Turkmen Front, will replace Turan.

Turkmen are the third largest ethnic group in Iraq, comprising around 10 percent of the population, which amounts to approximately three million.

The Turkmen Front was a key supporter of Baghdad's reclaiming control over Kirkuk and another disputed region following the events of October 2017, which saw the Kurds lose control of the oil-rich disputed city for the first time in more than a decade.