Al-Sura News has reported that Assyrian whistleblowers are claiming that Kurdish citizens in Iraqi Kurdistan are posing as Assyrians with their flags at referendum rallies. Iraqi Kurdistan will be conducting an unconstitutional independence referendum on September 25, where it is expected that the Yes vote will overwhelmingly win. Al-Sura News explained that because the whistleblowers fear reprisals against their families in Al-Qosh, a center for the Assyrian community in northern Iraq, the whistleblowers cannot reveal their identities. The Assyrian community are increasingly worried about being absorbed into a newly created Kurdish state as the current Kurdish administration continues to attack Assyrians in position of power in the region, including replacing the Assyrian mayor of Al-Qosh with a Kurd some weeks back.