Iraq: Rolling Back the Kurdish Referendum

One month after holding an independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan, the government that organized it is offering to suspend the results. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) issued a statement on Oct. 24 saying it was ready to compromise with the Iraqi government in Baghdad. The KRG said it was willing to freeze the results of September's referendum, begin a dialogue with Baghdad based on the Iraqi constitution, implement a cease-fire and halt military operations. The Iraqi government hasn't released an official response yet, but Iraqi Vice President Nouri al-Maliki and a member of parliament close to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi have rejected a suspension of the results. Instead, Baghdad has demanded the KRG annul the vote entirely, which the KRG has rejected....