Taza Khurmatu

Not be confused with Tuz Khurmatu

Arabic: تازة خورماتو‎‎ Tazat Khurmatu Turkish: Tazehurmatu
Town
Arabic: تازة خورماتو‎‎ Tazat Khurmatu
Coordinates: 35°18′10″N 44°19′43″E / 35.30278°N 44.32861°E / 35.30278; 44.32861
Country	Iraq
Governorate	Kirkuk
District	Daquq

Taza Khurmatu or Taza (Arabic: تازة خورماتو Tazat Khurmatu‎‎, Turkish: Tazehurmatu, lit. 'New Khurmatu') is a town in Iraq located just south of Kirkuk.^[1] It is populated predominately by Shia Turkmens.^[2][1] In 2009 it was the site of the 20 June 2009 Taza bombing, where more than 70 people were killed by a suicide bomber.^[3] In June 2014, along with the nearby villages of Brawawchli, Karanaz, Chardaghli, and Bashir, it experienced a massacre of at least 40 villagers committed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.^[4] It is currently controlled by the Peshmerga^[5] and PMU.^[6][7][8] In March 2016, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant fired mortars containing an unidentified chemical agent killing one and injuring 600.^[9][10][11]

Taza Khurmatu, along with Altun Kupri, Amerli, Bashir, Bustamli, Mahalabiyah, Qarah Tappah, Sulaiman Bek, Tal Afar, Tuz Khormato, and Yankjah, make up the largest Turkmen-majority cities in Iraq, while Mosul, Kirkuk, Kifri, Daquq, Muqdadiyah, Jalawla, and Saadiyah have significant Turkmen minority populations.

References