Kurdistan

Kurdistan, region in southwestern Asia, encompassing sections of southeastern Turkey, northern Iraq, and western Iran , and smaller parts of Armenia and northeastern Syria. Its name means "Land of the Kurds," and the area has long been inhabited by a Kurdish majority. Kurdistan is perceived as a nation-state by the Kurdish people, though it is not recognized as a self-governing political entity.

Geographically, Kurdistan is a predominantly mountainous region, and the terrain has had a strong impact on the Kurdish economy and culture. The entire area is in an active seismic zone, with frequent earthquake activity. Mountain ranges include the Taurus Mountains in Turkey and the Zagros Mountains and Elburz Mountains in Iran. These mountains are interspersed with plateaus and hills, most notably the eastern Anatolian Plateau. Mount Ararat, in eastern Turkey, is the region's highest peak, reaching 5137 m (16,854 ft). Kurdistan contains the watershed of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, both of which originate in Turkey. Major lakes include Lake Van in Turkey and Lake Urmia in Iran. The region's climate ranges from hot, arid summers to bitterly cold winters.

In the early 1990s Kurdistan had an estimated total population of about 26 million, comprising about 13.7 million inhabitants in Turkey, about 6.6 million in Iran, about 4.4 million in Iraq, and about 1.2 million in Syria, and a small number in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Most Kurds live in small villages, although the number of urban residents is increasing. Major cities in the region include Mosul, Kirkuk, Irbìl, and As Sulaymanìyah in Iraq; Sanandaj and Saqqez in Iran; and Diyarbakir in Turkey. The Kurds are organized in numerous clans, tribes, and tribal confederations. The majority are Muslims, mostly of the Sunni sect; a small percentage are Shiites. The remainder are mainly Cult of Angel believers, an ancient Kurdish faith. Many Muslims are also followers of Sufism. The primary language of the Kurds is Kurdish, an Indo-Iranian language that includes a number of different dialects.

Agriculture and livestock raising are the chief occupations in Kurdistan. Principal crops are cereals, including wheat, barley, rye, and oats; cotton, olives, rice, sugar beets, and tobacco are also grown. In the summer many Kurds take their sheep, goats, donkeys, and mules to higher mountain pastures; winter grazing occurs in the lower plains. Kurdistan's mountainous soils are generally poor, and vegetation is sparse and seasonal; however, new irrigation and hydroelectric projects sponsored by the Turkish government on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers offer the potential for improved agriculture and development.

Crude oil reserves, located near Kirkuk and Irbìl in Iraq, are the region's most important natural resources. Other important minerals include chromium, copper, and iron ore. Kurdistan also contains deposits of granite, limestone, marble, and travertine, which are used in the construction industry.

History

Kurds have lived in the area of Kurdistan since as early as 2400 BC. Many claim to be descendents of the Medes, a nomadic people of the Media Empire (900-500 BC). Most of Kurdistan was conquered by Arabs in the 7th century and converted to Islam; the region later fell to the Ottomans. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire following World War I (1914-1918), the Kurds were promised the creation of an independent state as part of the Treaty of Sèvres (1920); this part of the treaty was never ratified, however. The Treaty of Lausanne (1923), which superseded the Treaty of Sèvres, did not include provisions for an independent Kurdish state. Since that time, the issue of Kurdish autonomy has been a source of conflict and political instability in those countries with large Kurdish minorities.

During the 1920s sporadic Kurdish revolts broke out in Iran, Turkey, and Iraq. In Iran, the Kurds were successful in securing an autonomous republic following World War II (1939-1945), but this lasted for only about one year. In 1961 Iran established a semiautonomous Kurdistan Province.

TurkishKurdistan

Turkey quelled Kurdish revolts in 1925, 1945, and 1979; the Turkish government also passed various laws forbidding the use of the Kurdish language and imposing other restrictions on manifestations of Kurdish nationalism. In the mid-1990s, however, the government lifted some of these restrictions, allowing for example, the publication of materials in Kurdish. Although all Turkish Kurds possess full Turkish citizenship and millions of Kurds have assimilated into Turkish society, relations between Kurds and the Turkish government continue to be strained. In 1984 the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Marxist group, launched an armed struggle against the Turkish government in an effort to secure an independent Kurdish homeland. The conflict intensified, and by mid-1996 at least 16,000 Kurdish rebels, Turkish troops, and civilians had been killed or left homeless as a result of the fighting.

In March 1995 35,000 Turkish troops moved across the border into northern Iraq in an aggressive effort to prevent PKK rebels from mounting cross-border raids into Turkey. They surrounded several Kurdish guerrilla strongholds and within days an estimated 200 rebels and 14 soldiers were killed in the fighting. Turkey was widely criticized for the incursion and it withdrew its troops six weeks later. In June 1996 Turkey repeated the incursion.

IraqiKurdistan

After prolonged warfare during the 1960s, Iraq promised autonomy to the Kurds in 1970 but failed to meet Kurdish demands in implementing the pledge. Fighting resumed in 1974, with the Kurds receiving support from Iran. At the time, Iran and Iraq were engaged in a border dispute, and Iran hoped that the Kurdish unrest would work in its favor. The Kurdish revolt collapsed in 1975, when the Iranian government withdrew support for the Kurds after reaching a border agreement with Iraq. Iraqi government attacks on Kurds continued throughout the Iran-Iraq War(1980-1988), during which the Iraqi Kurds sided with Iran. In 1988 the Iraqi government used chemical weapons against Kurds, killing thousands and forcing large numbers to flee their homes. Iraqi Kurds attempted another uprising following Iraq's defeat by coalition forces during the Persian Gulf War in 1991. The revolt was violently suppressed by the Iraqi government, attracting international criticism. More than 1 million Kurds fled to other areas of Kurdistan, and about 600,000 remained in refugee camps in northern Iraq under the protection of United States, British, and French troops. In a further effort to protect Iraqi Kurds, the international coalition declared a "no-fly zone" over northern Iraq, thereby guaranteeing Kurdish autonomy in this small section of Kurdistan. In 1992 Iraqi Kurds held their first elections to choose a leader and a national assembly; this government has been largely ineffective, however, due to violent clashes between two rival Kurdish factions, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).

Contributed by:

William A. Mitchell