Policy Analysis

July 5, 2017 Iraqi Kurdistan has finally set September 25 as the date for an independence referendum. After Mosul fell to the Islamic State (IS) in 2014, Masoud Barzani announced that the region will hold a referendum on independence, as Iraq has already essentially partitioned. Barzani renewed his call for

July 5, 2017 Iran is creating and reinforcing power centers for its allied forces by implementing its policies across a geographic area that extends from the western borders of Iraq to the shores of the Mediterranean. It is also creating provisional Shiite cells in Sunni Arab regions by employing paramilitary

For almost a century, Kurdish national aspirations were thwarted by geo-strategic considerations in which regional and international actors were complicit. Kurdish identity was mostly denied, marginalized, and disparaged, with dominant irredentist formulae — Arab, Iranian, and Turkish — stipulated as more suitable alternatives. In the newly independent North Africa of

The Kurdish question in Syria has long been a point of contention between the United States and Turkey. Throughout former president Barack Obama’s time in office, the primary determinant shaping U.S. strategy against ISIS was a reliance on Kurdish forces. This furtive reliance existed despite Turkish refusal to allow the

04/26/17 Last month, the governor of Kirkuk, Najmaldin Karim, raised the Kurdistan flag in the province, causing uproar inside Iraq and across the region. The Iraqi parliament denounced the unilateral decision, dismissing it as unconstitutional. The Kirkuk province itself was quick to condemn the action as well and asked for

March 14, 2017 Iraqi Kurdistan has been an autonomous region since 1992. It emerged as a quasi-state after the establishment of the no-fly zone in northern Iraq by the United States – along with the United Kingdom and France – which put an end to Saddam Hussein’s murderous attacks on

At a conference in Dahuk in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq a few weeks ago, I was intrigued to see the leader of the Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran (KDP-I) -- which the Tehran regime considers a subversive, terrorist group -- address the assembled notables. Sitting in the front row

February 7, 2017 Counter to what many believe, Islamists in Kurdistan are characterized by their openness to change and their intellectual and practical development. But challenges within and outside their parties, defined by political, economic, and administrative realities in the region, prevent them from playing an effective role in resolving

Following the September 11 terrorist attacks, the United States administration divided the world conceptually into good and evil blocs, with most of the evil blocs located in the Middle East. Pushing al-Qaeda out, toppling the Taliban in Afghanistan, and overthrowing the Ba’ath regime in Iraq further inspired the White House

An American and European-backed administrative “Marshall Plan” – contingent upon many requirements – is necessary in order to save Kurdistan.

Kurdish Islamist factions may be able to participate more fully in political life, but they must first take a clear stance on religious and social freedoms.

What is striking today are the historical similarities between the first Ottoman venture in Northern Iraq and the current deployment of Turkish troops in Bashiqa and other areas of Iraqi Kurdistan.

September 28, 2016 In a bold state-like move, the Kurdish Democratic Union Party ( PYD) conducted censuses in the Rojava canton of Jazira. The government of the autonomous region seems to realize that being the “good guys” on the battlefield is not enough. To be legitimate rulers, they need to

Kurdistan has been an island of relative stability and economic progress for nearly two decades, but continuing this success will require putting aside personal elitist rivalries and committing to political deal making and power sharing.

The Kurdistan Region is often praised as an anchor of stability in the Middle East; its military forces in particular are considered a major bulwark against the Islamic State (ISIS). Nonetheless, it faces potential balkanization as provincial voices begin advocating for autonomy from the Kurdish core. Both political parties and

Last month, many Kurds mourned the 100th anniversary of the Sykes-Picot agreement, signed on May 16 1916, which laid down the foundation for today’s nation states in the Middle East. Arguably, no single ethnic group despises this agreement more than the Kurds, who often view it as a moratorium on

March 31, 2016 The recent attack in Ankara, killing 34 people and injuring dozens more, has been quickly blamed on the PKK, even as a few days later the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) a break-away faction of PKK, claimed responsibility. The attack was only the latest in a series of

Five months ago Nawshirwan Mustafa, general organizer of the Change Movement (Gorran) party in Kurdistan, left Iraq for London under the pretext of receiving medical treatment for chronic back pain. His extended stay has puzzled not only his rivals, but also his supporters. Silence over Mustafa’s condition, as well as

March 10, 2016 Since February 2016 the public sector in Kurdistan has protested corruption and unpaid wages. For the first time in 25 years, Kurdish protesters are publicly showing their disappointment in the government. Meanwhile, the KDP’s Massoud Barzani, whose term as president has technically come and gone, has begun

August 7, 2015 During his one week visit to the United States in early May, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) president Masoud Barzani publicly and openly discussed the idea of independence for Kurdistan in Iraq. While President Barack Obama did not express support for this move, Barzani’s actions are still