The governor of Iraq's oil-rich Kirkuk province condemned a vote by Iraq's parliament on Thursday to remove him from office as "unlawful" and vowed to stay in power.
The decision to remove Najmaddin Kareem came after Kirkuk - claimed by both the central government in Baghdad and the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq - voted to take part in a referendum set for Sept. 25 on Kurdish independence.
"I will stay in office," Kareem told Reuters, hours after the parliamentary vote... The referendum will go ahead as planned."