Referendum plan backed by Iraqi Kurdish MPS

The Iraqi Kurdish parliament has voted to back a planned referendum on independence in the face of international opposition.

The Kurdistan Regional Government, sitting for the first time in two years, backed the 25 September vote yesterday.

Iraq’s central government rejected the referendum as unconstitutional on Tuesday.

Iran, Turkey and the US also object to the vote.

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said his country will hold a high-level security meeting on 22 September to decide what response to take. In a television interview yesterday, Mr Erdogan accused leaders of Iraq’s autonomous region of “serious political inaptitude” for going ahead with plans. Turkey has voiced strong backing to Iraq’s territorial integrity.