The prime minister of Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) has appointed ministers to replace four who were unilaterally expelled from the cabinet by his party during the worst political crisis in years. The dominant Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) suspended the four ministers from their posts earlier this month after accusing the Gorran movement to which they belong of instigating violent unrest for political gain. The expelled ministers were replaced on Tuesday with KDP politicians in what senior Gorran official Mohammed Tofiq described as an "illegal and illegitimate" move. The new appointments by Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani entrench the KDP's dominance over the affairs of the autonomous region, which has emerged as a key ally of the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham militants.Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) spokesman Safeen Dizayee said the four Gorran ministers were technically considered to be on leave, and that their reinstatement would depend on political negotiations between the parties. The four new ministers have been appointed on an "acting" basis, he said. The KRG was formed as a coalition government between the region's five main parties, but relations between them came under increasing strain over the presidency of Massoud Barzani, who is also head of the KDP.Gorran was one of four parties pushing for a reduction of the president's powers as a condition for extending his mandate, which expired in August, but the KDP has resisted. The Ministry of Peshmerga will now be led by Karim Sinjari, who is currently Interior Minister. Minister of Planning Ali Sindi was appointed to head the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Pishtiwan Sadiq will take over the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. The Ministry of Finance will run by the expelled minister's deputy, and the head of the Investment Board from Gorran has also been replaced. At the height of the crisis, the KDP prevented the speaker of the region's parliament, who is from Gorran, from entering Irbil province, which it controls. It also closed down the offices of two critical TV channels, one of them affiliated with Gorran. The movement expressed its disappointment with the recent appointments and issues a statement. "The filling of ministries without the parliament's consultation is not legitimate and the KDP is solving problems with problems. It affects the Kurdistan region's reputation in terms of democracy," read the Gorran statement. Mohammed Haji, a Gorran official was quoted by Rudaw news agency as saying "The elimination of a minister is in the hands of the parliament, not KDP's Politburo." In response, the head of the KDP Second Branch office Ali Hussein told Rudaw "We do not reject negotiations with any party, and we need the help of all parties. We had a political agreement with Gorran, but the way they behaved resulted in the unleashing of these objectionable incidents." "We all live in this country and we should work together and negotiate together," he added.After the disposal of four former ministers, protests were organized across the region and left at least four deaths. The demonstrations that began on Oct. 1 initially targeted the autonomous region's government, which many Kurds blame for an economic crisis that has left them struggling to pay the bills. But the anger took a partisan turn when protesters in the city of Qaladize torched an office of KDP. The pattern of unrest reflects long-running political divisions in the autonomous region of three provinces that have been exacerbated by a power struggle over the presidency of Barzani, who is also head of the KDP. Sulaimaniyah province, where the protests are taking place is dominated by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) party and former opposition movement Gorran, which is seeking to weaken the KDP's grip on power. In Irbil and Duhok, where the KDP is strong, security was tightened around offices of the PUK and Gorran to avert any retaliatory attacks. The KDP, Gorran, PUK and two of the region's other parties have been wrangling over the terms of an extension of Barzani's tenure since it expired on Aug. 20.