Shafaq News – Kirkuk

On Thursday, three unidentified gunmen abducted a Kurdish farmer in Kirkuk, one of Iraq’s most contested and diverse provinces.

A security source told Shafaq News that the assailants, traveling in a civilian vehicle, seized the farmer while he was working near Altun Kupri, north of Kirkuk, and transported him to an undisclosed location.

Security forces have launched a search operation to locate the kidnappers and secure the farmer’s release, the source noted, without providing further details.

Kirkuk, claimed by both Baghdad and the Kurdish governments, has long been a flashpoint for ethnic and political tensions. Its 1.9 million residents include Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen, and Christians, all vying for influence over its oil-rich territory.

On Wednesday, Turkmen Front leader Mohammad Samaan Agha called for fair ethnic representation in Kirkuk’s security and administrative institutions to preserve its diversity and promote genuine power-sharing.