Riyadh– Kefah Mahmoud Senjari, the advisor to President of Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani, said that the liberation of Mosul city will be a strike to former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

He accused Maliki of negligence which led to ISIS’ thrust into Nineveh and other Sunni governorates. According to Senjari, Maliki wanted the events to unfold this way to humiliate Sunnis and harm Kurdistan.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, the advisor said that Maliki is seeking to topple the government of PM Haidar al-Abadi.

The sacking of Ministers of Defense Khalid al-Obeidi and Finance Hoshyar Zebari proves that Maliki is trying to hide the real reason behind ISIS’ existence in Mosul, Senjari stated.

Senjari added that Abadi has come under pressure from day one, especially that Barzani expressed his support for Abadi on several occasions. According to the advisor, this means there is some sort of trust that Barzani and Kurdistan instated in Abadi.

During the visit of the PM of Kurdistan Region to Baghdad, a comprehensive plan was devised to liberate Mosul with a joint committee, stated the presidential advisor.

He added the roles of the Iraqi Army, the Popular Mobilization Forces, Peshmerga, and coalition forces in the Mosul battle were determined during the visit as well.

The agreement stated that PMF remains outside of Mosul while Peshmerga forces be in east, southwest, north and west of Mosul, Senjari explained.

The deal also specified that only Iraqi forces and Federal Police can enter the center of the city with the counter terrorism force.

He revealed that the U.S. Air Force stopped backing the operations for 24 hours upon realizing that PMF had advanced towards Tal Afar.

He added that the coalition resumed its air raids only after Abadi assured that the Iraqi Army is the only force which will enter Tal Afar and other cities.

Regarding Turkey, Senjari said that Turkish forces entered Iraq based on verbal and written agreements between Baghdad and Ankara.