Showdown turns to oil as referendum dispute intensifies
The day before Monday's Kurdistan independence referendum, Iraq's National Security Council called on the world to respect claims to federal control over oil and borders.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi leads a meeting of the National Security Council on Sept. 24, 2017, as it discussed actions it would take against the Kurdistan Regional Government for holding a referendum for independence the following day. (Source: Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office)
ERBIL - Iran has shut its border crossings with Iraqi Kurdistan following a demand by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi that countries end their oil trade with the autonomous region, a day before a non-binding referendum on independence.
Abadi and acting Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani gave simultaneous public statements Sunday that, while encouraging dialogue, essentially talked past each other in what is shaping up to be some of the most tense political standoffs in post-2003 Iraq.
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