Iraqi troops' attack on Kirkuk is “a flagrant declaration of war against the nation of Kurdistan”, Peshmerga general command said in a statement warning that the government of the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi should pay a “heavy price” for initiating the conflict.

The statement said that the military incursion into the Peshmerga controlled areas in the oil-province of Kirkuk is in retaliation against the right of the people to vote on their fate, Rudaw reported.

According to the statement, the Iraqi forces, including the Hashd, used American weapons they received for the war against ISIS.