Iraq’s Supreme Court has ruled that the constitution does not allow any region to secede. The declaration comes a month after the northern Kurdish region overwhelmingly voted for independence in a disputed referendum.

Iraq’s top court said on Monday there were no articles in the country’s constitution that allowed a region or province to break away.

The ruling was a response to a request from the central government in Baghdad to put an end to any “wrong misinterpretation” of the constitution and assert the unity of Iraq, a court spokesman said.

The court also rejected the September 25 Kurdish referendum that saw the Kurds overwhelmingly vote for independence, defying the government in Baghdad.

Tensions between the government in Baghdad and the Kurds escalated following the non-binding referendum.

Last month, Iraq-led forces launched an operation in the Kurdish-held areas and recaptured the oil-rich province of Kirkuk and other disputed territories from the Kurdish peshmerga forces.

Major blow for Kurdistan

Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Friday called on the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region to abide by the court’s ruling.

“We call on the region to clearly state its commitment to non-separation or independence from Iraq,” he said in a statement. There was no immediate reaction from Kurdish authorities.

Abadi said the government was now “taking the necessary measures to impose federal authorities.” He did not provide any further details.

The ruling is a major boost for Abadi as he seeks to prevent a repeat of the September vote, said Ahmed Younis, a Baghdad-based constitutional expert.

“The court ruling has put an end to the Kurdish attempt to breakaway from Iraq,” he added.

Kurdish Peshmerga fighters march in Irbil on September 13 in support of the planned independence referendum.

Iraq’s Supreme Court has ordered the suspension of an independence referendum in the semiautonomous region of Kurdistan scheduled for next week.

The Supreme Court in Baghdad said in a September 18 statement that it has “issued a national order to suspend the referendum procedures…until the resolution of the cases regarding the constitutionality of said decision.”

It is not clear if Kurdish leaders in northern Iraq would abide by the court’s ruling.

Baghdad has repeatedly condemned the referendum as unconstitutional.

The United States and the United Nations have called on the Iraqi Kurdistan region to hold off the vote amid concerns that it could contribute to instability as Iraqi forces fight the extremist group Islamic State (IS).

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on September 17 warned that the planned September 25 referendum “would detract from the need to defeat” IS and to rebuild cities captured from the extremists.

Countries in the region, including Iran and Turkey, have also have also vehemently opposed the referendum amid fears that it could encourage their Kurdish minorities to break away.

Iran on September 17 warned that should Iraq’s Kurdistan region gain its independence, it would mean an end to all border and security arrangements agreed previously between Tehran and the regional government.

Turkey on September 18 launched a military drill with tanks close to the Iraqi border, the army said.

Ankara’s national security council will meet on September 22 to discuss the country’s official position on the referendum.

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