The Sovereignty Party decided to "expel" Engineer Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Hafez from its ranks, against the backdrop of his failure to adhere to the party's directives, and his contribution to choosing a Kurdish governor for Kirkuk and electing him as head of the provincial council. The party confirmed in a statement issued today: "The session to form the local government in Kirkuk lacks legal legitimacy due to the commission of many violations, and a place outside the province was determined to hold the session, despite the absence of a security obstacle." Members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council elected yesterday evening, Ribwar Taha from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, as governor of Kirkuk and Mohammed Al-Hafez as head of the provincial council, in a session held at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad in the absence of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the Turkmen Front and the Arab Alliance. Source: National Iraqi News Agency