During the invasion maneuvers of the Iraqi army and the Hashd al-Shabi on Kirkuk, the defense line formed by the guerrillas, the peshmergas who refused to withdraw and the people of Kirkuk who took up arms in the Feylaq Crossing was broken when KDP forces abandoned the general security forces buildings and withdrew from the area along with their heavy weaponry.

Following the attacks the Iraqi army and the Hashd al-Shaabi forces with them launched on Kirkuk, the defense line formed by the HPG, the YJA Star, the volunteers and some peshmergas who refused to withdraw in central Kirkuk neighborhood of Feylaq was broken when KDP withdrew.

After the attacks started, HPG issued a call in the morning for self defense. Hundreds of citizens took their weapons and rushed to the areas the defense line was to be formed. Dozens of peshmergas also joined the guerrilla and the people in the defense line.

As preparations for the defense line continued, by 10.30, KDP peshmergas abandoned their security building at the Feylaq crossing and the crossing itself. KDP forces shot into the air to announce the start of Hashd al-Shaabi’s attack before they abandoned the area taking their heavy weapons with them.

The people were angry with the KDP peshmergas abandoning their posts, while some citizens went on the overpass and shot into the air in protest to the KDP forces leaving the area.

The people’s morale dipped when the KDP forces left the area, while some put down their arms and said: “If they don’t resist and just up and leave with such heavy weapons and tanks, how can we resist with just Kalashnikovs?”

Meanwhile, many citizens trying to leave their homes and cross into the safe line were caught on camera saying “Kaka aş betal e, aş betal e, em firotin” (“Brother it’s ash betal, it’s ash betal, they sold us out”) in reference to the laying down of arms (“ash betal”) in 1975 after the Algeria treaty.

HPG, volunteers and the peshmergas resisted for some time by the Feylaq crossing with their individual weapons, but had to retreat further into the neighborhoods to form a new defense line when the area was hit by tanks.

PEOPLE OF KIRKUK LEFT THE CITY WHEN THERE WAS NO RESISTANCE

Citizens who didn’t want to leave their homes during the invasion attacks by the Iraqi army and Hashd al-Shaabi later had to leave due to the lack of a central decision to resist.

The people, left undefended after the attacks on Kirkuk by the Iraqi army and the Hashd al-Shaabi forces, had to leave the city.

When the attacks began, citizens in southern and western neighborhoods of the city first crossed into the city center and then into the northern and eastern neighborhoods of the city.

Citizens crossed into the northern and eastern neighborhoods when the Iraqi army and Hashd al-Shaabi were able to advance without large scale resistance and migrated to Chamchamal, Teqteq, Hewlêr and Sulaymaniyah on threat of a possible massacre.

Some of the citizens took their children out of the city and then returned with their weapons. The lack of a central decision to resist has made the people furious while citizens left defenseless had to get out of the city.

Most of the Kurds left the city while there was no migration into the Arab and Turkmen neighborhoods. Some Sunni Turkmens were seen leaving their homes on threat of a massacre.

Citizens forced to migrate were greeted by other citizens in Teqteq and Chamchamal. A large portion of the residents of Teqteq and Chamchamal stayed on the roads through the night to host the people who had to leave Kirkuk.