ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Kurdistan Region-based Korek Telecom on Sunday said it reserved the right to seek “compensation” for damages caused by Iraq’s Communications and Media Commission (CMC), after the regulator said it began shutting down Korek’s switching centers outside the Region.

In late September, Korek Telecom said an Iraqi court had overturned the CMC’s decision to unilaterally cancel a financial settlement agreement between the two parties, ruling that the contract’s terms remained “valid”. This came after the CMC announced in June that it was canceling the agreement, citing the Kurdish operator’s alleged “breach of its contractual obligations, and the failure to implement its legal and financial commitments.”

Korek Telecom has been embroiled in a legal dispute with the CMC since November 2023, when the regulator blocked all incoming and outgoing communications between Korek and other carriers, citing the company’s failure to meet its financial obligations.

Following Korek’s statement, the CMC announced that it had begun shutting down Korek’s switching centers, ending its coverage in 14 provinces, excluding those in the Kurdistan Region. The commission said the measures were being carried out “in cooperation with the Iraqi National Security Service.”

It added that “coordination is currently under way” to complete the network shutdown procedures in Nineveh.

In its Sunday statement, Korek said it had obtained a court ruling “annulling” the CMC’s decision and upholding the settlement agreement.

Korek said it reserved the right “to claim compensation for all damages” caused by the CMC’s measures, accusing the commission of refusing to “comply with the court ruling, which is subject to immediate enforcement.”

Korek also said the CMC sent it a letter on Sunday “justifying the measures today, November 1, 2026, even though it bears his signature dated October 29”. The company said the letter “confirms that the measures taken against our company reflect a preconceived stance toward it”.

In late August, the CMC called on Korek Telecom users to add an alternative phone number from another operator to their digital accounts to prevent losing access when verification messages stopped arriving.

Korek Telecom, one of the Kurdistan Region’s leading operators, has repeatedly slammed the CMC’s measures, deeming them “unlawful”.