kurdistan | Al Majalla

After 100 years of armed struggle, what next for the Kurds?

The history of Kurdish factions' demands and tactics across four states is fascinating, not least for their relationships with the states in question.

Rustum Mahmud 13, Feb 2024

A Kurdish man walks past debris following a missile strike launched by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the Kurdistan region’s capital of Arbil, on January 17, 2024.

AFP

Is Iraqi Kurdistan turning into an arena to settle regional scores?

Friday's drone attack on one of Iraq's largest gas fields has led to a temporary suspension of production, resulting in major power cuts across the country's northern Kurdistan region.

Rustum Mahmud 27, Jan 2024

Iraqi protesters block a road following protests in the multi-ethnic Iraqi city of Kirkuk on September 2, 2023.

AFP

Kirkuk slides into violence over Kurdish party HQ handover

Distrust runs deep in the multi-ethnic, oil-rich city of Kirkuk as "rioting" and gunfire leaves young men dead. Al Majalla lifts the curtain on the events that transpired.

Shelly Kittleson 03, Sep 2023

Tires are burnt along a road north of the Iraqi city of Kirkuk on June 30, 2010, as Kurds protest against the local authority’s pending removal of their houses built on government land.

AFP

Kirkuk: Iraq’s perpetual missed opportunity

Fresh clashes have erupted in Kirkuk with at least one Kurdish protester reportedly killed. Al Majalla explains why the ethnically diverse city has long been a powder keg and flashpoint for violence.

Rustum Mahmud 02, Sep 2023

In a chat with Al Majalla, former Iraqi foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari details the run-up and aftermath of the US invasion of Iraq and its impact on the the Kurdish quest for legitimacy.

Barbara Gibson

The Kurds of Iraq and their painstaking quest for legitimacy

In a chat with Al Majalla, former Iraqi foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari details the run-up and aftermath of the US invasion of Iraq and its impact on the the Kurdish quest for legitimacy

Rustum Mahmud 27, Apr 2023

Members of exiled Komala Party inspect aftermath of bombing in the village of Zrgoiz, near Sulaimaniyah, Iraq, where the bases of several Iranian opposition groups are located, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022. An Iranian drone bombing campaign targeting the bases of an Iranian-Kurdish opposition group in northern Iraq has killed nd wounded dozens. (AP PhotoAla Hoshyar, Metrography)

Iran’s Biggest Fear: An Independent Kurdistan

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has frequently violated Iraqi sovereignty by firing missiles and drones at a number of targets in Iraq’s semi-autonomous northern Kurdistan region (KRG…

Suzan Quitaz 30, Dec 2022

A police motorcycle burns during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic republic's "morality police", in Tehran, Iran September 19, 2022. WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Protesters Rally Across Iran in Third Week of Unrest Over Amini's Death

Protesters rallied across Iran and strikes were reported throughout the country's Kurdish region on Saturday as demonstrations ignited by the death of a woman in police custody entered their third…

01, Oct 2022

Iraq’s Finance Minister Ali Abdul Amir Allawi

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister: Government Has Begun Radical Process to Reform Economy

The Iraqi government has begun a radical process to reform the economy through the white paper, said the country’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ali Abdul Amir Allawi, noting that 2022’s…

Salam Zeidan - Baghdad 22, Oct 2021

Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr celebrate holding his posters, after the announcement of the results of the parliamentary elections in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 11, 2021. Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced the parliamentary results of the November 10 vote which suggested that al-Sadr is the current front-runner with initial results coming from several Iraqi provinces. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

Iraq Elections 2021

The Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced 96% of the initial results for the early general elections held on Oct. 10, the fifth parliamentary vote since 2003. Many…

Mahdi Karayem 15, Oct 2021

A file photo of an Iraqi policeman manning machine gun near the Iraqi-Syrian borders at the Abu Kamal-qaim border crossing, the main border post between Iraq and Syria, September 8, 2012. (REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani)

Smuggling across Syrian-Iraqi Borders: New Challenge to Intl Coalition

Smuggling activities between Syria and Iraq poses a new challenge for the US-led international coalition, whose troops are located on both sides of Syrian-Iraqi borders. The coalition forces are…

Jiwan Soz 27, Aug 2021

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Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addresses Iranians on the occasion of the 36th anniversary of the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (portrait), in Tehran on June 4, 2025.

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LATEST ISSUE

After 100 years of armed struggle, what next for the Kurds?

Is Iraqi Kurdistan turning into an arena to settle regional scores?

Kirkuk slides into violence over Kurdish party HQ handover

Kirkuk: Iraq’s perpetual missed opportunity

The Kurds of Iraq and their painstaking quest for legitimacy

Iran’s Biggest Fear: An Independent Kurdistan

Protesters Rally Across Iran in Third Week of Unrest Over Amini's Death

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister: Government Has Begun Radical Process to Reform Economy

Iraq Elections 2021

Smuggling across Syrian-Iraqi Borders: New Challenge to Intl Coalition

How Israel upended Khamenei’s strategic patience doctrine

How Israel pulled off its unprecedented strike on Iran

Iran is further from regime change than Israel thinks

What would happen if Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz?

Will Iran-Israel strikes derail Trump's Mideast vision?

OPINIONS

Secrets and surveillance: a look at Washington’s spy museum

Syria reinforces its borders to stop any Israel-Iran spillover

How Israel upended Khamenei’s strategic patience doctrine

Attacks on Iran make a nuclear bomb more likely

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