In a matter of hours, the Kurdish government in Erbil lost years of geopolitical gains when Iraqi forces recaptured the city of Kirkuk on October 16th. Since then, ethnic tensions have been high in the city. Thousands of families have fled for fear of sectarian blowback. Meanwhile, Kurdish politicians accuse one another of treason. However, what is less visible is the political intrigue between the Iraqi Kurdish political factions, which attests to the formation of the next round of geopolitical hostilities.