McGurk: US wants only KRG, Iraqi forces in Sinjar

U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh Brett McGurk on Monday confirmed that Washington does not want any other forces except the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Iraqi forces in Sinjar.

According to a statement released by the office of Masoud Barzani, McGurk paid a visit to the KRG to hold meetings. It was said that McGurk assured them that only the KRG and Iraqi forces are welcomed in Sinjar by the United States.

The PKK terrorist group has been active in the Sinjar region since Aug. 3, 2014 using the pretext of Daesh's presence in Mosul.

Sinjar has been a source of concern for Ankara. The Turkish government has repeatedly asserted that it will not let the PKK form a new base in the Sinjar region, similar to their current one in Qandil, northern Iraq. Additionally, Ankara did not value the PKK's statement that it was withdrawing from the region.

Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in December 2016 that the Turkish military could take matters in its own hands if the KRG failed to drive the PKK out of Sinjar. Earlier in March, the KRG reiterated its call to the PKK terrorist group to stop deploying heavy weapons and to withdraw its militants from Sinjar.

In a written statement by KRG peshmerga forces, military activity by the PKK near the Iraqi-Syrian border was remarked on, and the KRG warned the PKK to withdraw its militants from Sinjar, which were deployed in the region under the guise of protecting the local Yazidi population.

Meanwhile, KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani on Monday reiterated the KRG's call on the PKK to withdraw from Sinjar. Speaking at an event, Barzani said, "The PKK must withdraw from Sinjar just as how the peshmerga returned from Kobani."

Stressing that the KRG's position on the issue is clear, Barzani said the terrorist group's presence in Sinjar leads to instability in the region.

Even though the PKK maintains its presence in Sinjar on the pretext of "protecting the Yazidi population," the Yazidis have also opposed the terrorist organization's presence.