Fighting has flared in Iraq between Kurdish forces and Shi’ite militia in a town south of the contested city of Kirkuk. <br /><br />No one was reportedly hurt, but the brief clashes in Tuz Khurmatu on Saturday are the latest sign of tension following an independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan last month. <br /><br />In Kirkuk, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are refusing to budge despite Baghdad ordering them to surrender key military positions. <br /><br />Kurdish Peshmerga spokesman, Brigadier General Bahjed Ahmed Salim said: “The Shi’ite militias are over there. Their goal is to cross the bridge and move into Kirkuk. We are taking our own measures.”<br /><br />Baghdad still lays claim to the oil-rich province and city which fell under Kurdish control in 2014 after the Iraqi army was ousted from Northern Iraq by ISIL. <br /><br />Despite being united in the fight against ISIL, thousands of Peshmerga fighters have been deployed to Kirkuk amid fears of a possible assault by Iraqi federal forces backed by Shiite militias.<br />
