ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Shakhawan Abdullah, the Iraqi parliament’s second deputy speaker, on Wednesday said that they will not allow any sessions of the legislature to be held until the issue of the Kurdistan Region’s civil servant salaries is resolved.

In late May, the Iraqi finance ministry informed the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) through a letter that it will suspend funding the Region for the rest of 2025, claiming that Erbil had already exhausted its share of the annual budget.

Abdullah said the letter from the Iraqi finance ministry includes “many mistakes,” adding that they have discussed the issue with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani and emphasized that civil servants must not be deprived of their livelihoods.

Baghdad’s decision, deemed “a political decision” by Kurdish authorities, jeopardizes the livelihoods of the Region’s over one million salaried workers for the next eight months.

The deputy speaker, who represents the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), expressed hope that Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court issues a ruling to address this issue “by the start of next week.”

Civil servants from the Kurdistan Region filed a lawsuit to Iraq’s top court in early June, demanding uninterrupted funding of their salaries on their specified dates as per a previous ruling of the court.

The federal court was unable to hold a session to rule on the issue as five out of its nine members were away for Hajj pilgrimage, which has now concluded. The court has four reserve judges, but the presence of at least nine is required to meet quorum.

“We will not allow any sessions of the parliament be held, which is currently being called for, until the issue of the Kurdistan Region’s civil servant salaries is settled,” Abdullah added.

The Iraqi parliament’s speakership last week called on Baghdad to reverse the decision as it is in violation of the Iraqi constitution and “will inevitably harm citizens in the [Kurdistan] Region and create an economic crisis.”

In a joint statement in late May, the Kurdish blocs in the Iraqi parliament said they were “shocked and saddened” by the decision, describing the move as a “political attack,” while demanding a permanent solution to the salary issues.
  
Years of conflict and unresolved issues between Erbil and Baghdad, and economic sanctions and pressure on Erbil by federal authorities, have pushed employees in the Region to live from paycheck to paycheck.