For all of the latest Kurdish news, see these sources:
ANF English: https://anfenglishmobile.com/
Hawar News: https://www.hawarnews.com/en/
Rojava Information Center: https://rojavainformationcenter.com
Women Defend Rojava: http://womendefendrojava.net/en/
Rojhelat: http://rojhelat.info/en/
Rojava Centre for Strategic Studies
Komun Academy:
MA NEWS
http://mezopotamyaajansi22.com/en/NEWS
NEWS
- Strategic dialogue with US won’t affect relations with Iran: Iraqi Foreign Minister
- Iran’s Natural Gas Exports To Turkey Drop To Zero In Second Quarter
- Iran to deploy sensors, drones to 1,000 km stretch of border with Kurdistan Region
- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe ‘to face new charge and trial in Iran’
- Turkey and Iran vow to target PKK in joint military operations
- Joint call for states to mandate a UN-led inquiry into the serious human rights violations during and in the aftermath of the November 2019 protests
- Russia, China and Iran trying to hack presidential race, Microsoft says
- Since 2010, Iranian forces have killed over 700 Kurdish border couriers: report
- Iran: Secret execution of wrestler Navid Afkari a ‘travesty of justice’
- Amnesty Calls on Tehran to Stop Torturing Families of Executed Political Prisoners
- US Vows to Restore International Sanctions on Iran
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
- In Iraq, the United States Must Be Careful What It Wishes For
- When Teaching Your Mother Tongue is Punished with Imprisonment: in Support for Zara Mohammadi
- Trump’s diplomatic triumph with Israel-UAE agreement applies ‘maximum pressure’ against Iran
- Why is the US still helping Turkey sabotage its role in Syria?
- Iraqi rivers under threat from dams in Iran and Turkey
- How to Stop Iran From Terrorizing Dissidents Abroad
- Denied freedom of thought and action, but Kurds are fighting back in Iran
- U.S. Says Iran Must Leave Syria, Russia Can Stay, But Allies Keep the Oil
- Rouhani Is No Moderate
- Iran shows off air defense in Kurdistan, Azerbaijan border region
- The Kurdistan Region in Iraq tries to Balance Turkey, Iran and the United States
- Emerging warmth of Turkey-Iran relationship shows myth of ‘Sunni vs Shia’
- One Way the Kurdish Insurgency Could Lead to the Collapse of Turkey
- Iran Regime’s Continuous Death Sentences, Require Global Action
- Iran’s assassins: Tehran has a long history of assassinating people
- The significance of Turkey and Iran’s military cooperation against the PKK
- High unemployment forces Iranian Kurds into smuggling, with deadly consequences
- Iranian-Turkish deal to fight PKK risks harming stability of Iraq’s Kurdish region
- US claims UN sanctions on Iran reinstated. The world disagrees
- Fear Engulfs Iran’s Entire Establishment
MUTLIMEDIA
- Rojhelat: Kurds in the Perso-Islamic republic (VIDEO)
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NEWS
- Strategic dialogue with US won’t affect relations with Iran: Iraqi Foreign Minister
26 Aug 2020 | Rudaw
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein has said strategic talks between the US and Iraq will not affect Baghdad’s relations with Iran.
https://www.rudaw.net/english/interview/26082020
- Iran’s Natural Gas Exports To Turkey Drop To Zero In Second Quarter
30 Aug 2020 | Radio Farda
The Turkish Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA) reports that in the second quarter of 2020, the country did not receive any natural gas from Iran. At the end of March, the separatist left-leaning Kurdish party, PKK, blew up the Iran-Turkey natural gas pipeline, but unlike previous cases Ankara delayed repairing the pipeline for three months. Therefore, it did not receive gas from its eastern neighbor.
https://en.radiofarda.com/a/iran-natural-gas-exports-to-turkey-drop-to-zero/30811230.html
- Iran to deploy sensors, drones to 1,000 km stretch of border with Kurdistan Region
01 Sep 2020 | Rudaw
Iran will deploy drones and sensors to a 1,000 kilometre stretch of its border with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the head of the country’s border guards said on Monday, as part of a “smart” border defence plan to better seal its frontiers.
https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iran/010920201
- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe ‘to face new charge and trial in Iran’
08 Sep 2020 | BBC News
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian woman jailed in Iran, has been told she has to face another trial. The charity worker is nearing the end of her five-year sentence for spying charges, which she has always denied. Iranian state media said she was brought before a revolutionary court in the country’s capital Tehran on Tuesday morning.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-54076857
- Turkey and Iran vow to target PKK in joint military operations
08 Sep 2020 | Middle East Eye
Turkey and Iran have agreed to target the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its affiliates in joint military operations, following high-level video conference talks attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Hassan Rouhani.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-and-iran-vow-target-pkk-joint-military-operations
- Joint call for states to mandate a UN-led inquiry into the serious human rights violations during and in the aftermath of the November 2019 protests
08 Sep 2020 | Justice for Iran
We, the undersigned human rights organizations, call on your government to address the continuing crisis of impunity for serious human rights violations committed by the Iranian authorities during the November 2019 protests and their aftermath, including through collective action at the 45th session of the UN Human Rights Council.
https://justice4iran.org/15336/
- Russia, China and Iran trying to hack presidential race, Microsoft says
10 Sep 2020 | Politico
Russian, Chinese and Iranian hackers have mounted cyberattacks against hundreds of organizations and people involved in the 2020 presidential race and U.S.-European policy debates, with targets including the campaigns of both Donald Trump and Joe Biden, Microsoft said Thursday.
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/10/russia-china-iran-cyberhack-2020-election-411853
- Since 2010, Iranian forces have killed over 700 Kurdish border couriers: report
12 Sep 2020 | Kurdistan24
Iranian security forces have killed at least 700 Kurdish couriers, locally known as Kulbar, on the border between Kurdistan Region and Iran over the past eleven years, according to data compiled by a human rights monitor.
https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/1dc6ce72-d798-46fe-95e7-526f8abdee80
- Iran: Secret execution of wrestler Navid Afkari a ‘travesty of justice’
12 Sep 2020 | Amnesty International
The secret execution this morning of wrestling champion Navid Afkari, without prior notice to him, his family or lawyer, after a grossly unfair trial, is a horrifying travesty of justice that needs immediate international action.
- Amnesty Calls on Tehran to Stop Torturing Families of Executed Political Prisoners
13 Sep 2020 | Iran in Focus
Three Kurdish political prisoners, Ramin Hossein Panahi, and Zaniar and Loghman Moradi, were executed by the Iranian regime. Their executions have resulted in calls by the international community for the regime to put an immediate halt to executions in the country.
- US Vows to Restore International Sanctions on Iran
16 Sep 2020 | Voice of America
The United States vowed to assert a “snapback” of all prior international sanctions on Iran, effective 8 p.m. Eastern Time on September 19, with more announcements to be made this weekend and next week as to exactly how Washington is planning to enforce the “returned U.N. sanctions.”
https://www.voanews.com/middle-east/us-vows-restore-international-sanctions-iran
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
- In Iraq, the United States Must Be Careful What It Wishes For
25 Aug 2020 | Foreign Policy
If Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi cracks down too hard on pro-Iran militias, as Washington has demanded, he risks losing his position and jeopardizing the country’s security.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/08/25/in-iraq-the-united-states-must-be-careful-what-it-wishes-for/
- When Teaching Your Mother Tongue is Punished with Imprisonment: in Support for Zara Mohammadi
25 Aug 2020 | Sarah Glynn, Bella Caledonia
When teaching your mother tongue is punished with imprisonment: Noam Chomsky heads a statement of support for Zara Mohammadi, sentenced to 10 years in an Iranian prison for teaching Kurdish.
- Trump’s diplomatic triumph with Israel-UAE agreement applies ‘maximum pressure’ against Iran
27 Aug 2020 | Washington Times
Earlier this month Israel and the United Arab Emirates announced they will normalize diplomatic ties and build a new bilateral relationship, a breakthrough which has the potential to recast the balance of power in the Middle East.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/aug/27/trumps-diplomatic-triumph-with-israel-uae-agreemen/
- Why is the US still helping Turkey sabotage its role in Syria?
27 Aug 2020 | Jerusalem Post
Washington sent its most pro-Turkey diplomat to Ankara this week as Turkey’s regime hosted Hamas leaders in a red-carpet ceremony in Istanbul. Former US ambassador James Jeffrey, who is now the US envoy for Syria and the anti-ISIS campaign, went to Turkey and said the US had “proved our value in many fields outside of Syria.” The comments were reported on Turkey’s TRT and by pro-government media in Turkey.
- Iraqi rivers under threat from dams in Iran and Turkey
29 Aug 2020 | Mail & Guardian
With its neighbours Turkey and Iran activating new dams, Iraq’s historic twin rivers could run dry — unless new infrastructure projects and tense talks with the neighbouring countries bear fruit.
https://mg.co.za/environment/2020-08-29-iraqi-rivers-under-threat-from-dams-in-iran-and-turkey/
- How to Stop Iran From Terrorizing Dissidents Abroad
30 Aug 2020 | Wall Street Journal
Jamshid Sharmahd, a California-based Iranian opposition activist, disappeared in late July while traveling to a technology conference in India by way of Dubai. Mr. Sharmahd’s family tracked his movements using mobile phone data to a remote region of neighboring Oman before he dropped off the map. Days later, he appeared blindfolded on Iranian state television as a result of what the Islamic Republic termed a “complex operation” by “anonymous soldiers.”
https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-to-stop-iran-from-terrorizing-dissidents-abroad-11598822066
- Denied freedom of thought and action, but Kurds are fighting back in Iran
05 Sep 2020 | Sarah Glynn, The National
Iran’s tyrannical and oppressive regime ensures that little news reaches the wider world. What does get out often concerns assassinations, imprisonments and state-orchestrated violence. In such circumstances, organised resistance is difficult, but one group standing up to the regime is the Free Life Party of Kurdistan, or PJAK, who follow Abdullah Ocalan’s ideas for radical democracy, feminism, ecology and multiculturalism.
https://www.thenational.scot/news/18700522.denied-freedom-thought-action-kurds-fighting-back-iran/
- U.S. Says Iran Must Leave Syria, Russia Can Stay, But Allies Keep the Oil
05 Sep 2020 | Newsweek
The United States is defending its policy in Syria amid heated criticisms, with the State Department calling for the removal of Iranian and Iran-backed forces, but not a Russian withdrawal, as the Pentagon continues to back a mostly Kurdish partnered militia that battles ISIS and secures the oil and gas reserves.
https://www.newsweek.com/us-says-iran-must-leave-syria-russia-can-stay-allies-keep-oil-1529826
- Rouhani Is No Moderate
06 Sep 2020 | National Review
His regime’s harsh crackdown on protesters makes clear that Iran is as dangerous and oppressive as ever.
- Iran shows off air defense in Kurdistan, Azerbaijan border region
07 September 2020 | Jerusalem Post
Iran has granted a rare interview with one of its top air-defense officials responsible for areas in five provinces that border the Kurdistan region of Iraq and also Azerbaijan.
- The Kurdistan Region in Iraq tries to Balance Turkey, Iran and the United States
08 Sep 2020 | The National Interest
The autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq sits at a crossroads. To its south is Baghdad, where Iranian-backed rogue militias have fired dozens of rockets at facilities housing U.S. troops. To its north is Turkey, a member of NATO, which has been carrying out operations against Kurdish militants in the mountains of northern Iraq. To its east is Iran, which has also fought a low-level Kurdish insurgency and which opposes the continuing U.S. role in Iraq. As if those weren’t enough problems, the region also has Syria to its northwest where there are questions whether the U.S.-led coalition will remain.
- Emerging warmth of Turkey-Iran relationship shows myth of ‘Sunni vs Shia’
09 Sep 2020 | Jerusalem Post
Iran and Turkey ostensibly back different sides in Syria, but in recent years they have grown closer due to joint opposition to the US and also Israel. Iran and Turkey both back Hamas, for instance.
- One Way the Kurdish Insurgency Could Lead to the Collapse of Turkey
09 Sep 2020 | The National Interest
Modern Turkey arose nearly one hundred years ago against the backdrop of European efforts to divide the Anatolian Peninsula. This fact drives both Turkey’s collective paranoia and its xenophobia. Its nightmare is a Kurdish secession. While the PKK and its offshoot groups long ago abandoned this goal in favor of localized autonomy, Turkish president Recep Erdoğan’s penchant for instigating fights with neighbors and regional states may soon make Turkey’s fears a self-fulfilling prophecy.
- Iran Regime’s Continuous Death Sentences, Require Global Action
14 Sep 2020 | National Council of Resistance of Iran
The Iranian regime executed Navid Afkari Sangari on Saturday despite global outcries to stop his execution. The regime did not have the capacity to halt Navid’s execution, since doing so was against the regime’s existential need for execution and suppression of a restive society. In addition, fearing Navid’s execution and his funeral could spark an uprising and increase further international pressure on them, the mullahs rapidly and secretly executed him and buried him at night.
- Iran’s assassins: Tehran has a long history of assassinating people
14 Sep 2020 | Jerusalem Post
Tehran has passed on its assassination expertise to its proxy Hezbollah and has also worked with the Syrian regime to carry out assassinations of those who oppose its interests.
- The significance of Turkey and Iran’s military cooperation against the PKK
17 Sep 2020 | Ahval
Turkey and Iran have confirmed for the first time that they are coordinating militarily against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its Iranian affiliate the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK).
- High unemployment forces Iranian Kurds into smuggling, with deadly consequences
17 Sep 2020 | Al-Monitor
A new wave of deadly violence targeting Iranian Kurdish smugglers in the country’s mountainous border region has renewed focus on decades-long state neglect of the minority group.
https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2020/09/iran-kurd-mountain-border-smuggling-kolbar.html
- Iranian-Turkish deal to fight PKK risks harming stability of Iraq’s Kurdish region
20 Sep 2020 | Middle East Eye
A joint declaration between Iran and Turkey to coordinate efforts to fight armed Kurdish groups in Iraq has provoked alarm in some quarters, over fears that an escalation of fighting could further destabilise an already tense region.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-iran-joint-operation-kurdish-rebels-iraq-pkk-pjak
- US claims UN sanctions on Iran reinstated. The world disagrees
20 Sep 2020 | Al Jazeera
The United States has broken with all other permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and unilaterally declared the re-imposition of all UN sanctions against Iran – a claim rejected by Iran and the international community, including Washington’s close allies, as having no legal basis.
- Fear Engulfs Iran’s Entire Establishment
21 Sep 2020 | Iran in Focus
Iran’s Friday prayer leaders as one of its main speakers about the government’s situation showed last Friday the authorities’ fear about the upcoming events. While many state-run media are trying to show a strong position of the clerical establishment and show that the authorities do not care about the UN ‘snapback’ mechanism, the reality is so bitter that its prayer leaders are forced to show their concerns.
https://www.iranfocus.com/en/general/44625-fear-engulfs-irans-entire-establishment/
MULTIMEDIA
- Rojhelat: Kurds in the Perso-Islamic republic (VIDEO)
27 Aug 2020 | Scottish Solidarity with Kurdistan, Kamal Soleimani
Dr Kamal Soleimani, who works on Islamic and Middle Eastern history and politics, talkedbabout the Kurds in Eastern Kurdistan/west Iran. The closed and oppressive Iranian regime ensures that we receive little news about the 12-15 million Kurds who live in this part of Kurdistan, beyond reports of death sentences. The Islamic Republic has no time for minority rights, or for people who don’t accept their version of Islam, and Kurds are subjected to the worst excesses of Iran’s tyrannical rule, which has deprived them of freedom of thought and action, and often of the opportunity to earn a living, They make up almost half of Iran’s political prisoners, and Iran has executed more Kurds than members of any other ethnic group. But the regime is also in internal crisis.
https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com/video-rojhelat-kurds-in-the-perso-islamic-republic/
Peace in Kurdistan
Campaign for a political solution of the Kurdish Question
Email: estella24@tiscali.co.uk
https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com
Contacts Estella Schmid: 07846 666 804 & Melanie Gingell: 07572 430903
Patrons: John Austin, Baroness Blower of Starch Green, former GS NUT, Prof Bill Bowring, Julie Christie, Noam Chomsky, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Prof Mary Davis, Lord Dholakia, Simon Dubbins, UNITE International Director, Jill Evans, former MEP, Desmond Fernandes, Lindsey German, Convenor STWC, Melanie Gingell, Christopher Gingell, Prof Dr. Michael Gunter, Secretary-General, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC), Rahila Gupta, journalist, Nick Hildyard, policy advisor, Dafydd Iwan, Former President Plaid Cymru, James Kelman, Bruce Kent, Jean Lambert, former MEP, Dr Les Levidow, Open University, Elfyn Llwyd, Aonghas MacNeacail, Scottish Gaelic poet, Mike Mansfield QC, David Morgan, journalist, Doug Nicholls, General Secretary, GFTU, Dr. Jessica Ayesha Northey, Sinn Fein MLA Conor Murphy, Dr Thomas Jeffrey Miley, Kate Osamor MP, Margaret Owen OBE, Ali Gul Ozbek, Former Councillor and Mayor of Haringey; Gareth Peirce, Dr Felix Padel, Maxine Peake, actor, Dr Thomas Phillips, Liverpool John Moores University, Trevor Rayne, writer, Joe Ryan, Tony Simpson, Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation, Stephen Smellie, PIK Trade Union Liaison Officer, Jonathan Steele, journalist, Steve Sweeney, journalist, Gianni Tognoni, General Secretary Permanent People’s Tribunal, Dr Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, Dr Tom Wakeford, Dr Derek Wall, Julie Ward, former MEP, Kariane Westrheim, Chair, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC); Hywel Williams MP.