ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Less than two months after the publication of Halabja’s accession to a province by the Iraqi Official Gazette in early May, the Iraqi National Intelligence Service is set to open a branch in the province.

The Intelligence Service’s Sulaimani branch director Nariman Hassan and Halabja Governor Nukhsha Nasih, discussed the opening of an Intelligence service branch in the new province, similar to other Iraqi provinces on Tuesday, the Diwan of Halabja province said in a statement acquired by The New Region.

During the meeting, Nasih voiced her support for the plan, stressing that all necessary administrative measures will be taken to facilitate the opening of the branch as soon as possible.

The Iraqi Official Gazette published a law in early May, making official Halabja’s status as Iraq’s 19th province, six days after President Abdul Latif Rashid ratified the bill, coming against the backdrop of “the material, human, and environmental damage it suffered as a result of the bombing with prohibited chemical weapons by the former regime.”

The opening of the Intelligence service branch comes as part of early efforts by the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to open the necessary provincial offices and departments in the province, finalizing administrative steps to complete the city’s provincehood.