Arabs in Kirkuk dismayed at relocation plan

By Mustafa Mohammed and Sherko Raouf

KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) - Arabs forced to move to Kirkuk decades ago by Saddam Hussein expressed dismay on Sunday at the Iraqi government's plan to encourage them to leave the oil-rich northern city and return to their original homes.

Iraq is expected to settle the final status of the ethnically-mixed city in a local referendum by the end of the year. Some officials and analysts have warned it might spark bloodshed.

Kurds want to incorporate Kirkuk into their largely autonomous Kurdistan region, which lies just to the north.

Abu Jabar, a 70-year-old Arab, said he moved to Kirkuk in 1975 from the southern city of Nassiriya with his wife and two children. His extended family now numbers 18.

"Some of my sons have married, had children and bought houses here and do not know anything about their city of origin. They have never been there," Abu Jabar said.

The cabinet last week agreed to give Arab families 20 million dinars (7,600 pounds) each and a piece of land if they voluntarily returned to their original towns. Government sources told Reuters about the decision on Saturday.

Under Saddam, Kirkuk was subject to an "Arabisation" policy that drove many Kurds from their homes and brought in Arabs, mostly Shi'ite Muslims from the south.

Iraq's constitution says that in the build-up to the city-wide referendum, the government should reverse Saddam's policy. A big influx of Kurds would sharply increase the odds the vote would result in Kirkuk becoming part of Kurdistan.