Shafaq News/ Aram Jamal, a correspondent for "Zoom" News Channel in Kirkuk, was detained by riot police while covering a protest by the Arab and Turkmen communities against the formation of the new local government.

Jamal told Shafaq News Agency that "a riot police unit in Kirkuk arrested me after a confrontation occurred between protesters and security forces. I was in the middle of the protesters covering the events when some of them began throwing stones at the security forces."

He added, "The riot police held me for twenty minutes, seized my camera, and detained several individuals who had attacked the security forces. We were then transferred to an armored vehicle. The police attempted to force us into the vehicle, but Kirkuk Police Chief Brigadier General Fattah al-Khafaji intervened, instructing the officers to release us and return the camera."

Jamal further explained, "I sustained minor bruises on various parts of my body due to being struck by stones thrown by the protesters."

Earlier, Arab and Turkmen leaders had organized a protest in front of the Kirkuk governorate building to express their opposition to the newly formed local government.

On Saturday, nine members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council—five from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), three Arabs, and one Christian—met at the Rashed Hotel in Baghdad, where they voted to elect Rebwar Taha from the PUK as governor of Kirkuk and Mohamed Hafiz from the Arab component as chairman of the 16-seat council.

The Turkmen, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and three Arab members boycotted the Baghdad session.

On July 11, the Kirkuk Provincial Council met for the first time since the elections seven months ago, amid ongoing political disputes that had delayed the selection of the Kirkuk governor.