ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Farmers in Kirkuk are being forced to harvest their wheat crops before they fully ripen due to an escalating risk of field fires.
Across agricultural areas in Sargaran subdistrict, Dibis, and Daquq districts, wheat fields have become increasingly vulnerable to fire outbreaks during the harvest season, pushing farmers into early and often damaging harvesting practices.
Mohammed Ali, a combine harvester operator who worked continuously through the Eid al-Adha holidays, described an atmosphere of fear among the farmers in the area.
“The fear of fire has gripped all the lands. Most farmers cannot wait for the wheat to fully mature. They tell us to harvest it any way possible, just to be free from that fear,” he told Rudaw on Saturday.
According to local accounts, nearly 250 dunams (625 square kilometers) of wheat fields have recently burned in just three days in the Sargaran, Dibis, and Daquq districts. Farmers say the absence of nearby fire stations has left them with little choice but to confront the flames using basic, improvised tools to stop fire from spreading.
Beyond the fire threat, farmers are also facing deepening financial pressure due to pricing disparities and unresolved land ownership issues in the disputed areas between Baghdad and Erbil.
Mohammed Ismail, a representative of farmers in Shanagha village in Sargaran, voiced concerns over economic hardships facing local farmers.
“Our major problem is that we are excluded from the [government's] agricultural plan. Our wheat is purchased at 500,000 dinars per ton [$381], while farmers included in the agricultural plan receive 700,000 dinars per ton [$534]. This is a great injustice,” he said.
Although many Kurdish farmers hold official title deeds to their land, their properties are still classified as disputed, which excludes them from receiving state agricultural support. As a result, they are forced to sell their crops at significantly lower prices each year.
The situation in Kirkuk’s agricultural zones is rooted in long-standing land disputes. Kurdish farmers in the province have repeatedly faced disruptions during sowing and harvest seasons, with Iraqi forces and Arab settlers preventing access to farmland - tensions that revive decades-old conflicts over land ownership linked to historical Arabization policies.
These disputes trace back to the Baath era under Saddam Hussein. In 1975, several Kurdish villages were declared prohibited oil zones, and residents were stripped of their land rights. By 1977, the Baath Supreme Revolutionary Court redistributed these lands to Arab settlers.
Following the fall of the regime in 2003, Iraq introduced Article 140 of the constitution to address and reverse these demographic changes. However, implementation has stalled for years, leaving many land disputes unresolved and causing recurring losses for farmers who say they are losing entire agricultural seasons.
Hardi Mohammed contributed to this report from Kirkuk.