Population: approximately 25-30 million (some Kurds reside outside of Kurdistan)
Religion: Most are Sunni Muslims; some practice Sufism, a type of mystic Islam
Other Facts:
Kurds have never achieved nation-state status, making Kurdistan a non-governmental region.
Portions of the region are recognized by two countries: Iran, where the province of Kordestan lies; and northern Iraq, site of the autonomous region known as Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) or Iraqi Kurdistan.
Kurds were mostly nomadic until the end of World War I and the break up of the Ottoman Empire.
Kurds make up about 10% of the population in Syria, 18% of the population of Turkey, 15-20% of the population of Iraq, and nearly 10% of Iran.
The Peshmerga are the 100,000-strong national military force who protect Iraqi Kurdistan.
Timeline:
October 30, 1918 – (TURKEY) – The Armistice of Mudros marks the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.
November 3, 1918 – (IRAQ) – With the discovery of oil in the Kurdish province of Mosul, British forces occupy the region.
August 10, 1920 – (TURKEY) – The Treaty of Sèvres outlines the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, with Turkey renouncing rights over certain areas in Asia and North Africa. It calls for the recognition of new independent states, including an autonomous Kurdistan. It is never ratified.
July 24, 1923 – (TURKEY) – The Allies and the former Ottoman Empire sign and ratify the Treaty of Lausanne, which recognizes Turkey as an independent nation. In the final treaty marking the conclusion of World War I, the Allies drop demands for an autonomous Turkish Kurdistan. The Kurdish region is eventually divided among several countries.
1923 – (IRAQ) – Former Kurdish Governor Sheikh Mahmud Barzinji stages an uprising against British rule, declaring a Kurdish kingdom in Sulaimaniya in northern Iraq.
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December 2012 – (TURKEY) – Erdogan announces the government has begun peace talks with the PKK.
January 10, 2013 – (FRANCE) – Three Kurdish women are found shot dead in Paris, one of whom was a founding member of the PKK.
March 21, 2013 – (TURKEY) – Imprisoned PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan calls for dialogue: a letter from him is read in the Turkish Parliament, “We for tens of years gave up our lives for this struggle, we paid a price. We have come to a point at which the guns must be silent and ideas must talk.”
March 25, 2013 – (TURKEY) – Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan and Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani negotiate a framework deal that includes an outline for a direct pipeline export of oil and gas. The pipeline would have the Kurdish crude oil transported from the Kurdish Regional Government directly into Turkey, allowing the KRG to be a competitive supplier of oil to Turkey.
June 2014 – (IRAQ) – Refugees flee fighting and flood into Iraqi Kurdistan to the north as ISIS militants take over Mosul. Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) closes then reopens, with restrictions, border crossings used by those fleeing ISIS.
June 23, 2014 – (IRAQ) – Iraqi Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani says that “Iraq is obviously falling apart, and it’s obvious that the federal or central government has lost control over everything.”
Early August 2014 – (IRAQ) – Reportedly 40,000 Yazidi, a minority group of Kurdish descent, flee to a mountainous region in northwestern Iraq to escape ISIS, after the group storms Sinjar, a town near the Syrian border. Also, 100,000 Christians flee to Irbil, after Kurdish leadership there promises protection in the city.
August 11, 2014 – (IRAQ) Kurdish fighters in Kurdistan, who are called Peshmerga, work with Iraqi armed forces to deliver aid to Yazidis stranded on Mount Sinjar after fleeing ISIS fighters.
August 12, 2014 – (IRAQ) Some Yazidi tell CNN that PKK fighters control parts of the mountain, and have offered food and protection from ISIS.
December 2, 2014 – (IRAQ) The government of Iraq and the government of Iraqi Kurdistan sign an agreement to share oil revenues and military resources. Iraq will now pay the salaries of Peshmerga fighters battling ISIS and act as an intermediary to deliver U.S. weapons to Kurdish forces. The Kurdistan government will deliver more than half a million barrels of oil daily to the Iraqi government. Profits from the sale of the oil will be split between the two governments.
January 26, 2015 – (SYRIA) After 112 days of fighting, the YPG, Kurdish fighters also known as the People’s Protection Units, take control of the city of Kobani from ISIS.
