Planes pictured on the tarmac at Arbil International Airport, in the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region, on November 23, 2015 (AFP Photo/Safin HAMED)

Tehran (AFP) - Iran said Sunday it had blocked all flights to and from Iraq's Kurdistan at the request of Baghdad, a day before the autonomous region holds an independence referendum opposed by Tehran. But the vote has stirred such anger among neighbours that the Kurds may find themselves in a more difficult position as a result

Leaders of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) billed the non-binding referendum as an exercise in self-determination and said they will not actually make a real push for statehood.
Voters in Iraqi Kurdistan head to the polls for a referendum on independence from Iraq.