ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Kurdish officials on Friday told The New Region that an Iraqi military force had advanced toward the Qambar oil field in Garmiyan administration’s Kifri district before they were blocked by the Peshmerga forces. Iraqi relevant authorities denied the validity of the reports.

Sahir Ali, the mayor of Kifri, told The New Region that the Iraqi forces accompanied a team from the Iraqi oil ministry and staff of contracted oil companies, but “they were prevented by the Peshmerga and the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas police forces and asked not to return until they had the approval of the Kurdistan Regional Government and the [Kurdish] Ministry of Natural Resources.”

“The fifth battalion of the Peshmerga prevented Iraqi forces from coming and seizing the [Qambar] field, but according to reports, the Iraqi army plans to come tomorrow to take over the area on a larger scale,” Akbar Haider, a Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official in Khanaqin, told The New Region.

Iraq’s Security Media Cell said in a statement on Friday evening that the area is under the joint control of the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), stressing that “there are no unilateral actions by any military party, and the current challenges require greater joint coordination and cooperation.”

“Joint operations between all relevant units and formations to protect these areas are ongoing, and joint coordination is in place to implement future joint operations,” the cell noted.

Thursday’s attempt comes amid renewed tensions between Iraqi and Kurdish forces over the control of key energy sites in areas disputed between the federal government and the KRG.

In August 2024, a large number of Iraqi army troops and Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) seized several oil wells in Garmiyan, reportedly following an agreement with Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the area.