Iraqi Turkmen Front
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Iraqi Turkmen Front
Irak Türkmen Cephesi İraq Türkman Cəbhəsi الجبهة التركمانية العراقية al-Jabha al-Turkmaniya al-Iraqiya |
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| President | Erşad Salihi |
| Spokesperson | Ali Sadık Mehdi |
| Honorary Leader | Sadettin Ergeç |
| Deputy President | Hasan Turan |
| Founded | April 24, 1994 |
| Headquarters | Kirkuk |
| Ideology |
Regionalism Iraqi Turkmens' interests Turkish nationalism |
| Political position | Centre |
| Colours | Blue |
| Seats in the Council of Representatives of Iraq: |
5 / 328
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| Website | |
| www.kerkuk.net | |
The Iraqi Turkmen Front (Turkish: Irak Türkmen Cephesi, Azerbaijani: İraq Türkman Cəbhəsi, Arabic: الجبهة التركمانية العراقية al-Jabha al-Turkmāniya al-Irāqiya) is a political movement founded in 1995 which seeks to represent the Iraqi Turkmen people. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the ITF has contested control of Kirkuk and other areas of northern Iraq. The ITF claims that Kirkuk belongs to the Turkmen people although they compose only 13-17 percent of the population.
The ITF claims a region named Turkmeneli (literally meaning the "land of the Turkmens") as the homeland of the Iraqi Turkmens. Turkmeneli includes within its boundaries Kirkuk, Tel Afar, Erbil, Mandali, Mosul, and Tuz Khormato. However, Tel Afar and Tuz Khormatio are the only cities where Turkmens are reportedly the majority and despite their claim, the Iraqi Army and Peshmerga (Kurdish Army) have not allowed them to form their militia and take control of the areas where they live.
During the 2014, Northern Iraq offensive, the Iraqi Army fled from Kirkuk. The Peshmerga forces then took control of the city. Kirkuk is currently controlled militarily by the security forces of the Kurdish Regional Government, although it is administered separately from Iraqi Kurdistan.
Currently, the ITF plays an active role in the ongoing Iraqi insurgency and fight against the Islamic State to defend the claimed region of Turkmeneli (especially Kirkuk and surroundings) and the Iraqi Turkmen population living inside.
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Wikipedia