Kurdistan
Region of West Asia with a historical Kurdish presence
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| April 14 2025 |
Halabja Governorate
Iraqi Council of Representatives passed the bill officially recognizing Halabja as a province.
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| March 1 2025 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
The PKK executive committee, based in northern Iraq, declares an immediate ceasefire with Turkey. They request Öcalan's release but do not specify a timeline for disarmament. Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz welcomes the move as a potential new phase towards a 'terror-free Turkiye'.
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| February 27 2025 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
Abdullah Öcalan calls for an end to the 40-year conflict, proposing disarmament and disbanding of the PKK. His statement is read out by the pro-Kurdish DEM party, who acted as intermediaries between Öcalan and the Turkish government.
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| February 23 2025 |
Kurdistan Region–PKK conflict
Residents of Guherz village demanded both Turkey and PKK to leave Iraqi Kurdistan.
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| 2024 | A report by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy suggested that Kurdistan Region's autonomy 'hangs in the balance' due to punitive measures by the Iraqi government. |
| November 2024 | British police arrested seven people in London in a counter-terrorism investigation linked to the PKK. Searches were conducted at eight locations, including the Kurdish Community Centre, which was to be closed for up to two weeks. |
| October 2024 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
PKK killed 7 people in an attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries headquarters.
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| September 3 2024 |
Baloch–Kurdish relations
Armed Kurdish pro-PKK militants attack Şişli Plaza in Istanbul, burning and destroying Turkish government properties. The attack was dedicated to Mahal Baloch and Rizwan Baloch, and claimed to be in response to Abdullah Öcalan's imprisonment.
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| August 2024 |
Baloch–Kurdish relations
Mahal Baloch, a BLA female suicide bomber, conducts attacks in Balochistan, using the alias 'Zilan Kurd' inspired by Zeynep Kınacı.
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| June 2024 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
An Iraqi Kurdish source asserts that the Arabisation campaign in Kirkuk, under Arab governor Rakan Al-Jubouri, has exceeded the levels of demographic manipulation seen during the Ba'athist regime.
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| June 10 2024 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) announces it will boycott the regional parliamentary elections, citing unconstitutional rulings against the Kurdistan Region in the past four years.
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| March 2024 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Kurdish judge Abdul Rahman Zibari resigns from the Supreme Court of Iraq in protest, criticizing court rulings as a move towards centralization and violation of Kurdistan Region's constitutional rights.
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| March 2024 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Kurdish authorities in Iraq express dissatisfaction with several Supreme Court of Iraq rulings, describing them as an evident shift towards political centralism.
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| February 2024 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Yerevan Saeed from the Global Kurdish Initiative for Peace warns about potential dissolution of the Kurdistan Region due to ongoing tensions with Baghdad and internal Kurdish political problems.
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| 2023 |
Halabja massacre
The movie '1988' was released, telling the story of the 1988 Halabja attack.
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| 2023 |
Nahla valley
A Turkish reconnaissance drone crashed in the valley, sparking fires that spread across 2km of Assyrian agricultural land. The Shlama Foundation helped extinguish the fires.
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| 2023 |
Iraq War
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani indicated support for an indefinite U.S. military presence in Iraq.
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| 2023 | Documentary 'Dream's Gate' by Negin Ahmadi was completed, highlighting the experiences of YPJ women fighters during the Syrian Civil War. |
| October 22 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Violent clashes erupted in Makhmour between Iraqi security forces and Peshmerga, occurring after the town was handed over to Iraqi forces following PKK withdrawal. The two-hour mortar exchange resulted in six deaths, including the 18th Peshmerga Infantry Brigade commander and his deputy. The strategic town is located between Mosul, Erbil, and Kirkuk, with both sides denying responsibility for initiating the conflict.
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| September 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Masrour Barzani sends a letter to the President of the United States expressing concerns about a possible collapse of Kurdistan Region and calling for US intervention, following a series of punitive measures by the central Iraqi government.
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| September 2023 | A leaked letter from Masrour Barzani, prime minister of KRG, warned about an imminent collapse of the federal model in Iraq and urged the United States to intervene. |
| August 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
The Supreme Court of Iraq issued a verdict halting the transfer of the building back to the Kurdistan Democratic Party, a decision which was criticized by the KDP.
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| August 28 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Arab and Turkmen anti-KDP residents staged a sit-in in front of the contested building and blocked the main road between Erbil and Kirkuk. Pro-KDP Kurds initiated counter-protests and demanded the road be reopened. Iraqi security forces responded by opening fire on Kurdish protesters, resulting in four Kurdish protesters being killed.
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| August 26 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Tensions began in Kirkuk when a building formerly used as the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) headquarters, and currently occupied by Iraqi Armed Forces, was scheduled to be transferred back to KDP following an order by the Prime Minister of Iraq.
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| July 2023 |
Nahla valley
Kurdish checkpoints in the region caused significant controversy, posing challenges for Assyrians attempting to enter their villages.
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| April 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Makhmour clashes result in 2 Iraqi soldiers killed, 6 injured, and 4 Peshmerga killed, 5 injured.
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| April 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
Unrest in Kirkuk results in 4 Kurdish protesters killed, 16 injured, and 40 detained.
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| March 2023 |
Kurdistan Region
The International Chamber of Commerce ruled the Turkey-KRG petroleum agreement illegal, causing the cessation of petroleum product pumping through the Kirkuk–Ceyhan Oil Pipeline and leading to increased illegal oil smuggling to Iran.
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| March 2023 |
Iraq War
Tony Blair, former British Prime Minister, publicly rejected comparisons between the Iraq War and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, arguing against using the Iraq War as a justification for territorial annexation.
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| March 25 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
All oil exports from the Kurdistan Region were halted following the ICC ruling, effectively preventing the KRG from exporting oil to Turkey without permission from the Iraqi Ministry of Oil.
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| March 13 2023 |
Halabja Governorate
Iraqi Council of Ministers recognised Halabja as an official governorate of Iraq, though the Council of Representatives delayed hearing the bill multiple times.
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| February 2023 |
Iraqi–Kurdish conflict
The International Court of Arbitration issued a verdict in favor of Iraq, challenging the Kurdistan Region's independent oil export practices.
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| 2022 | Became Head of the Parastin and Zanyari / Zanyari Agency. |
| 2022 | Kurdish film 'Kobanê' was released, showcasing the role of YPJ women fighters during the Siege of Kobanî. |
| November 21 2022 | A mortar attack in the Karkamış district of Gaziantep kills a 5-year-old boy and a 22-year-old woman, with 6-10 others injured. |
| November 20 2022 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
Turkey launched Operation Claw-Sword - airstrikes on PKK positions in Iraq and Syrian Democratic Forces positions in Syria.
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| November 13 2022 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
A bombing in Istanbul killed six people, with Turkey blaming a Kurdish Syrian separatist.
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| June 30 2022 | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan claimed Sweden promised to extradite 73 'terrorists' wanted by Turkey. |
| June 28 2022 | During the NATO summit in Madrid, Turkey softened its opposition to Finland and Sweden's NATO membership after they affirmed the PKK as a terrorist organization. |
| June 28 2022 | PYD was included in the trilateral memorandum signed by Turkey, Finland, and Sweden during the NATO summit in Madrid, without being explicitly defined as a terrorist organization. |
| April 17 2022 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
Operation Claw-Lock began, a cross-border offensive into Iraqi Kurdistan targeting areas including Metina, Zap and Avashin.
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| March 2022 |
Iraq War
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov drew a parallel between the US invasion of Iraq and Russia's actions in Ukraine, criticizing the US's justification for the Iraq War as being based on unsubstantiated claims about chemical weapons.
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| January 18 2022 |
Kurdistan Region–PKK conflict
PKK again attacked the Kirkuk–Ceyhan Oil Pipeline.
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| 2021 | Closure case initiated against the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), accusing the party of links to the PKK. |
| 2021 |
Nahla valley
A fire occurred in the Nahla valley, with Assyrian residents unable to immediately extinguish it or receive assistance from the Kurdish Regional Government.
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| 2021 | Appointed as Commander of the Secretariat Forces Command of President Mam Jalal. |
| 2021 |
Iraq War
Economic recession occurred, likely attributed to the long-term economic consequences of the Iraq War and subsequent regional instability.
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| 2021 |
Iraq War
Iraq experienced an economic depression triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and a significant drop in oil and gas prices, marking the most severe financial crisis since Saddam Hussein's rule.
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| 2021 |
Iraq War
Iraq underwent currency devaluation for the first time in decades, leading to critical challenges in importing essential goods like medicines and food, and struggling to manage national debt due to lack of foreign currency.
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| 2021 |
Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
The Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army was reported to be planting cannabis in the countryside of Afrin, an area captured from Kurdish forces during Operation Euphrates Shield.
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This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency, Kurdistan Region, Kurdistan Workers' Party, Kurdistan Region–PKK conflict, Democratic Union Party (Syria), Iraq War, Baloch–Kurdish relations, Women's Protection Units, Nahla valley, Jalal Sheikh Naji, Kurdistan, Halabja massacre, Halabja Governorate & Iraqi–Kurdish conflict, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.