, its rejection to convert to the latter to a province , pointing out that the choice of a region still remains.

Salahuddin province, the first Iraqi provinces outside Kurdistan Region voted on a project to convert it to a province in 2011, but Iraqi authorities have aborted the project , claiming that the regions stipulated by the Iraqi constitution would divide the country.

The head of the Council , Ahmed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said in a news conference in the compound of the presidential palaces , attended by " Shafaq News " that "converting Tuz Khurmato to a province is a decision that has political and sectarian forms and threatens the unity of Iraq ."

Karim added that "the decision was made to support certain individuals at the expense of the interests of the people of Tuz Khurmato and aims to achieve electoral gains ."

He pointed out that " The Council calls on religious authority and political blocs to reject the decision to transfer Tuz Khurmato to a province and considered it as an approach to fragment the national fabric ."

The head of the provincial council said that "the demand of Salahuddin province will continue if the project of converting Tuz Khurmato goes."

Nineveh preceded Salahuddin yesterday , and announced that it is with the converting Tal Afar and Nineveh Plain districts to provinces if considered within Ninevehprovince.

The Iraqi cabinet approved during its regular meeting on Monday to transform Tal Afar and Tuz Khurmato districts to two provinces amid welcome and Kurdish objection .

It also agreed in principle to convert Nineveh Plain and Fallujah to two provinces .

If the formal proceedings end , the districts will be provinces No. 20 , 21 , 22 and 23 in Iraq after the Iraqi government recently approved Halabja in Kurdistan Region as province No. 19 .

Tal Afar district is affiliated to Nineveh province on the Syrian border , while Tuz Khurmato is affiliated to Salahuddin province, Turkmen say that they are the majority in both districts and demanded several times to convert them to two provinces .

Tuz Khurmato is of the disputed areas between the federal government in Baghdad and Kurdistan Region as Kurds are expected to reject the decision to settle the dispute about it.

Kurds demand the application of Article 140 of the Constitution , which includes a roadmap to settle the disputes area over the Kurdish areas , in which Kurds say that these areas have been deducted from Kurdistan Region due to the policies of the former regime.

Fallujah resident of an overwhelming Arab majority of Sunni sect while Christians form the majority in Nineveh Plain as well as Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen from different doctrines.