Kurds

By Clemens Hoffmann and Can Cemgil | (The Conversation) | – – The Trump administration’s plans for the war against the so-called Islamic State (IS) are at last becoming clear. And it seems his still-young government has chosen which ally to put first: the Syrian Kurds. On February 24, the US’s top commander in the […]

Donald Trump

Trump sends heavier weapons to Leftist Syrian Kurds to Fight ISIL

contributors

TeleSur | – – A Syrian militia led by the Kurdish leftist group YPG said they received armored vehicles from the U.S. military, the first such support. The U.S. has boosted support for its Syrian ally, Syrian Democratic Forces, SDF, alliance, supplying them with armored vehicles for the first time as they prepare for a […]

Iraq

Kurds Will Come Together to Discuss Independence With Baghdad

contributors

TeleSur | – – Kurdish independence “is a reality that will come true,” said Masoud Barzani, President of the Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. Kurdish parties will meet with the Iraqi government to discuss independence, reported Kurdish media on Saturday. The delegation will include five Kurdish parties, who will meet with Turkmen, Chaldean and Assyrian […]

Energy

Is Bruited Sec. of State Tillerson allied with Iran & at war with Iraq?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – A couple of years ago an oil tanker showed up off the Texas coast with cargo from Iraqi Kurdistan. The problem? Iraqi Kurdistan is a province of Iraq, and the central government in Baghdad claims that petroleum discovered in Iraqi Kurdistan is under the control of […]

Iraq

The Fate of Iraq’s Minorities After Mosul

contributors

By Tyler Fisher and Kamal Kolo | ( OpenDemocracy.net) | – – The liberation of Mosul offers the international community a unique opportunity to permit the region’s most vulnerable minorities to exercise self-preservation and self-determination. Prayer cloths on Mount Arafat in the Yezidi holy site of Lalish, Kurdistan Region. Picture by Levi Clancy. Creative Commons […]

Iraq

Will Kurdish Soldiers Withdraw From Parts Of Mosul Their Leaders Covet?

contributors

By Histyar Qader | Erbil | (Niqash.org) | – – Baghdad and Iraqi Kurdistan have agreed where Kurdish military should fight. But, as commanders worry, there’s been no agreement as to how long Kurdish soldiers will stay after the Islamic State leave. According to a statement from the Iraqi Kurdish government, around 35,000 of their […]

Iraq

Will Turkey, Iran & Iraq make the Mosul Campaign a Land Grab?

contributors

By James Miller | ( RFE/RL ) | – – We may be witnessing the end of the extremist group, the [so-called] Islamic State [group] (IS), as we know it. Over the weekend, the coalition of Turkish military soldiers and Syrian rebel groups, backed by a small number of U.S. Special Operations Forces and air […]

Featured

Russia and Turkey Make up: What implications for Syria, Kurds?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Russian President Vladimir Putin was in Turkey on Monday for direct talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, in a bid to further normalize relations between the two countries. Russian-Turkish trade and diplomatic ties were stress late last fall when Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet […]

Free Syrian Army

As Truce Starts, Russia Tells Free Syrian Army to Stop Fighting Kurds

contributors

TeleSur | – – Moscow added it would continue its own air strikes against the Islamic State group and the militants formerly known as the Nusra Front Russia’s Defense Ministry called on Free Syrian Army militants to “stop fighting Kurdish units,” as the cease-fire announced last week began in the war-torn nation. The ministry, which […]