Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament, Shakhwan Abdullah, called on the security authorities to expedite deploying the joint brigade of the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga forces in the outskirts of Kirkuk to protect civilians from ISIS.

Abdullah told Shafaq News Agency, "Citizens and farmers, especially the Kurds, are attacked, and some seek to displace them and seize their lands on the outskirts of Kirkuk."

"The area was subjected to repeated violations in several areas and villages inhabited by a Kurdish majority." He added.

The Parliament Deputy Speaker called on the government and the security authorities to "expedite the deployment of the joint brigade in the hot spots on the outskirts of Kirkuk."

Abdullah held "the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces (PM Mustafa Al-Kadhimi) and the Kirkuk administration full responsibility for failing to handle the security file, the frequent violations, and the innocent casualties in areas that were stable and safe for many years."

Kirkuk, populated by Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen, Christians, and other minorities, is one of 15 ethnically mixed areas in northern Iraq.

It is one disputed area between Erbil and Baghdad covered by Article 140 of the constitution; therefore, it was subjected to a joint authority between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government.

Kirkuk was meant to have a census under the 2005 constitution, drafted two years after former Iraqi leader Saddam was toppled in the U.S.-led invasion. Still, it did not take place because of the risk of ethnic and religious tensions.

During Saddam's Anfal campaign waged against the Kurds in the 1980s, there was a forced "Arabization" of disputed areas, which ejected Kurds from the Governorate. Arabs from other parts of Iraq were then settled, taking over Kurdish homes and businesses.

Many Arabs have been ousted since Saddam was toppled in 2003, encouraging the Kurds to reclaim large parts of the disputed territories, including Kirkuk.

Displaced Kurds were given incentives to return, while Kurds from other areas also moved in, angering other minorities.