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By Rauf Naqishbendi: The Kurdish revolution in Iraq commenced in June 1961. Fifty-seven years in the making, it is one of the most protracted revolutions in the history of humankind, with tragic outcomes. This revolution was initially led by the Kurdish Democratic Party under the leadership of Mustafa Barzani. Ironically, Barzani didn’t believe in a…
By Stop Organization for Anti-Corruption: More than 2000 people have arrests warrant in the Kurdistan region but none of them have been arrested yet. An official from the Ministry of the Interior reveals that some of these people have immunity, and the addresses of some of them are not known and some other have left Kurdistan….
By Arian Mufid: On 25th September the referendum took place and 92% voted “yes” to a Kurdish state and separation from Iraq. As a result the Iraqi government started their attack on Kurdistan with the help of Iran and, within a few hours, Iraqi and Iranian Shia militia troops captured the most strategic city of…
By Aras Ahmed Mhamad: Since Nawshirwan Mustafa’s (1944-2017) death on May 19th, the political landscape in Sulaimani province is going through a haphazard situation. The passing away of Nawshirwan Mustafa has left Sulaimani with no charismatic leader to challenge Massoud Barzani’s policies and put the affairs of the city in order. Nawshirwan Mustafa’s death has…
By Abdul-Qahar Mustafa: Iraqi Kurdish politicians from different political parties have recently negotiated with one another to work out their differences over the inactive parliament and presidential issues, with the hope to put an end to the political crisis in Kurdistan. However, the results of their meetings were not made public in detail and all…
By Arian Mufid: n July 2009 Nawshirwan Mustafa decided to convert his Washa company into a political movement which he called Gorran, which means ‘Change’. The Party’s main slogans were against corruption and for an independent judicial system and more equality. During a short period of political rallies the movement managed to attract lots of…
By Aras Ahmed Mhamad: When Hujam Surchi was beheaded in January 2015 by an Islamic State member and the photos of the atrocity circulated in the media, the entire Kurdish population felt outraged. Kurds all over the world felt disgraced and degraded when it became known that the IS member was speaking Kurdish. Hujam Surchi’s head embodied…
By Aras Ahmed Mhamad: Ever since the 2011 17 Shubat (17 February) Demonstrations, which lasted for 62 days, ended, there has not been a month or even a week without rallies, protests and demonstrations in the Kurdistan region, especially in Slemani province. In September 2014, I wrote an article entitled “Does Demonstrating Have Any Value…
By Abdul-Qahar Mustafa: In democracy, every individual has a single vote but in a country where decision-making is controlled by a group of rich men who came together in the form of a political party, people have very little say in the actions and decisions of government. The rich privileged families, who receive special education…
By Hogar Hadi Hassan: Ever since the 1980s, most countries in the developing world have become more democratic, more peaceful and richer. However, this statement does not apply to countries with oil. Oil producing countries around Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia are suffering from political and economic maladies that did not exist…
By Mohammed Hussein: Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) are clear examples of oil-dependent states and governments that recently got shaken by the current oil-price fall. Iraq is still struggling with the implications of the problem, but the KRG showed its dysfunctionality in the early months of the crisis. Driven by public sector employees’…
By Muhamed Hassan – Immersed Thinking: Iraq’s prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, had raised people’s expectations for an end to the country’s political impasse when he presented to parliament (March 31) a new list of ministers that could form a new dawn. But there are already voices who are in disagreement with his choice, raising concerns…
By Twana Ahmed Xeyat: “Who became rich from oil in his country?” “Nobody and everybody”. The question was asked by John Campbell, a former United State Ambassador to Nigeria, and the answer was given by a Norwegian diplomat. That Norway should be so wealthy is no surprise. It is the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter, with annual…
By Harem Karem & Aland Mahwy: In a letter to the Abu Dhabi Bourse on 22 October 2013 (as required under the freedom of information law), Hamid Jafar, of Dana Gas and a former advisor to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), revealed that he had filed a court case in London demanding $430 million from the…
By Harem Karem and Kamal Chomani: In an article entitled ‘The KRG Economy: Booming or Dooming’, published March 2015, we explained how the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) had stumbled into financial crisis. Since then, things have only worsened. The KRG debt has surpassed $22 billion – 190% of its GDP; this includes $2 billion owed to…
