Iraq approved a plan for its semi-autonomous Kurdish region to transfer oil to Baghdad, a step toward resuming exports that have been halted for more than two years.

The Iraqi cabinet approved on Thursday a long-anticipated agreement with the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region that that could reset their strained relationship over oil exports and public sector salaries.

Fighters with a Kurdish separatist militant group that has waged a decades-long insurgency in Turkey have begun laying down their weapons.

Iraq approved a plan for its semi-autonomous Kurdish region to transfer oil to Baghdad, a key step toward resuming exports that have been halted for more than two years.

The statement on Thursday said that production from its oilfields stands at 280,000 bpd, of which 50,000 bpd is allocated for local consumption

IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — A Kurdish militant group that has waged a long-running insurgency in Turkey announced Thursday its fighters in northern Iraq will begin handing over their weapons, marking the first concrete step toward disarmament as part of a peace process.

Iraqi Kurds have been in control of their region since 1991, when, with the help of the U.S.-enforced no-fly zone, they drove Saddam’s forces out of northern Iraq.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - In a bid to resolve the ongoing financial crisis between Erbil and Baghdad, Rudaw has learned that Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani and Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein - a senior Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) figure - are set to meet