Violence as federal forces move further toward Kirkuk

Iraqi security forces have been ordered to retake control of oil assets and military bases that have been under KRG protection since 2014. Iraqi forces drive toward Kurdish Peshmerga positions on Oct. 15, 2017, on the southern outskirts of Kirkuk. [AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images] By Kamaran al-Najar, Rawaz Tahir and Mohammed Hussein of Iraq Oil Report Published Monday, October 16th, 2017 KIRKUK - Iraqi federal forces and Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers began shelling each other on the southern outskirts of Kirkuk city early Monday, after Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi formally announced that he had ordered an operation to retake military bases and other "federal installations" in Kirkuk province. "Commander-in-Chief Haider al-Abadi has instructed Iraqi Army, Federal Police, CTS to secure bases and federal installations in Kirkuk province," the Iraqi Government said on its official Twitter account. CTS refers to the Iraqi Army's elite Counter-Terrorism Service.