A weekend in Iraqi Kurdistan….

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In case you are looking for Big Ben in Middle East…

I happened to pay a visit to Kurdistan region, Iraq last weekend. It was one of the most satisfactory visits I had recently.

I visited Sulaymaniyah and Erbil. I flew from İstanbul to Sulaymaniyah and travelled to Erbil by car to fly back to İstanbul. Between these two biggest cities of Kurdistan (it takes 3 hours to go) there are 5 checkpoints. A few years ago there were 17… There are also trenches all over to prevent bombed car attacks.

Iraqi Kurdistan is a safe haven in Middle East. The situation is definitely vulnerable but there is peace for the moment. If Mousul was not occupied by ISIS, the trade and nation building would continue unabated. Because of the ISIS threat, commerce had slowed down. Kurds dominate the region but there are so many ethnicities and religious beliefs. And there is an ongoing democratic experiment. A highly advanced pluralist constitution with a high degree of decentralization is at work. So far so good. ISIS or external powers, of course, might mess up this island of peace…

Speaking of external powers. Turkey is notorious. When Saddam was taking a revenge on Kurds after the Gulf War, Turkish soldiers distributed aid among Turkomans only. This is just one of the many issues of Turkey’s troublesome relation with the government. Most recent rapprochement with Turkey and Barzani is widely criticized but the latter is an all time power player and he is probably repositioning after the rise of PYD in Syria Kurdistand. While Barzani-ruled Erbil has better relations with Turkey, I hear that in Talebani-ruled Sulaymaniyah, Iran has more impact. In the mean time a new movement from Sulaymaniyah is rising: I have met some from the Gorran movement. It has 24 seats in the Kurdish Parliament (111 seats total). Left-democratic sensibilities, it had and it seems to be more intellectual and more independent of external powers. The party does not have armed forces- which might be a problem in the region (!).

Sulaymaniyah is more progressive but in general women are relatively more free than I expected in Iraqi Kurdistan. You can see women in public life. Not the ideal but better than many other places in the region.

Here is a photo gallery from my trip. Feel free to ask any questions since I was lazy to write explanations:(

In order to better understand the region.

Visit National Museum of Amna Suraka  More here

Citadel of Erbil– There is an ethnographic museum inside the citadel: Kurdish Textile Museum. Some of my photos were taken there.

And eat… I have had the chance of tasting Kurdish Cuisine 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Related posts:

1. Today I was arrested (and then released…)
2. Greetings from Amasya
3. A few dates related to Erkan’s life in the next weeks….
4. Erkan will be in Manchester, UK on 6-7 Sept to attend Careers #BeyondBorders.
5. Bülent Arınç says he is to retire from politics… A TR politics roundup…

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Turkey’s “active Foreign” Policy: Blackmailing EU over the refugee crisis, Threatening Russia & US for supporting Kurdish forces in Syria…

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European leaders offer Turkey ‘action plan’ on migration crisis

World news: Turkey | guardian.co.uk by Ian Traynor in Brussels

EU leaders said to consider offering Ankara £2.2bn plus quicker visa-free travel for its citizens and resumed negotiations on EU membership

Europe launched a push late on Thursday at the fourth EU summit this year on the refugee crisis to obtain Turkey’s co-operation in stemming the flow of hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants, while also agreeing a package of repressive measures aimed at securing the union’s porous external border and curbing new arrivals.

Migrant Crisis Leads to Calls for Tighter Borders in Europe

NYT > Turkey by By ANDREW HIGGINS

Gathering in Brussels, European leaders also endorsed a push to get Turkey to control the flow of Syrians and others before they can reach Europe

The Guardian view on EU refugee talks with Turkey: too much on the table | Editorial

World news: Turkey | guardian.co.uk

Turkey deserves credit for hosting refugees but the European Union’s ‘action plan’ is more political theatre than anything else

Stability in Syria under Assad ‘a dream’: Turkish FM

Turkish Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioğlu has discredited any argument suggesting war-torn Syria could regain stability under Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, saying anyone defending such an argument was “in a dream,”

Turkey’s Erdogan calls the shots at EU summit

EurActiv.com

Faced with a refugee crisis they seem unable to control, EU leaders last night (15 October) tried to accommodate ambitious demands by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, just two weeks before crucial elections in Turkey.

EU summit to push Turkey on migrants

European Union leaders will on Oct. 15 try to thrash out solutions to the continent’s spiralling migrant crisis and step up a diplomatic offensive aimed at winning Turkey’s help in stemming the flow of Syrian refugees.

EU can’t stem refugee crisis without Turkey: Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Oct. 15 Europe had no chance of overcoming its biggest refugee crisis without cooperation with Turkey and called for a crackdown on human smuggling off its coast

Warning PYD, Ankara says any violation against Turkey will be reciprocated

In strongly-worded remarks, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioğlu has recommended Syria’s Democratic Union Party (PYD) watch their step, making clear that any move aimed at Turkey would not remain unreciprocated.

European Council, parliament at odds over Turkey

European Council President Donald Tusk’s warning to Turkey that it will only win concessions from the EU, such as fast-tracked travel visas, if it successfully reduces the flow of refugees reaching Europe has drawn reaction from the European Parliament.

No Schengen, no readmission, says Davutoğlu

The implementation of readmission and visa liberalization agreements will be executed in a simultaneous way, the Turkish prime minister has stated, offering the European Union to set the execution date for mid-2016 instead of the end of 2017

66,000 babies born in refugee camps in Turkey

Turkey will not hand over 66,000 babies born in refugee camps to tyrants, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said at the Global Forum on Migration and Development, referring to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad

EU courts Turkey on migration crisis ahead of summit

EurActiv.com

European Council President Donald Tusk told Turkey yesterday (13 October) that it could win concessions from the EU, such as visa-free travel, if it successfully reduces the flow of refugees reaching Europe.

EU presses Turkey over migration deal

 BBC News | Europe | World Edition

A delegation of EU commissioners heads to Turkey in a last-ditch bid to reach a draft agreement over how to tackle the migration crisis.

Turkey used to be a model state. So what went wrong? | Natalie Nougayrède

World news: Turkey | guardian.co.uk by Natalie Nougayrède

The causes of its problems are mainly external. The nation should be helped with the massive numbers of refugees arriving, not shunned or stigmatised

Council of Europe human rights head ‘concerned’ over freedom of expression in Turkey

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks has expressed concern about recent negative developments affecting the right to freedom of expression in Turkey, citing the recent ban on reporting about the investigation into the Oct. 10 suicide bombing in Ankara

Turkey warns US, Russia against backing Kurdish militia in Syria: Officials

Turkey has warned the United States and Russia it will not tolerate Kurdish territorial gains by Kurdish militia close to its frontiers in north-western Syria, two senior officials said.

UNHCR chief questions EU refugee strategy with Turkey
euronews

ATHENS (Reuters) – The U.N. refugee agency chief questioned on Monday the European Union’s strategy of building more camps inTurkey to stem the flow of refugees into Europe, saying it would be more effective if host countries allowed refugees to work.

Related posts:

1. Nothing new: “Erdoğan says women’s equality with men ‘against nature’ Dispatches from Turkey…
2. Turkey vs. Russia. Turkey will probably bow but not without some show for domestic audiences…
3. FP roundup: “EU rapporteur tells Dutch journalist restriction on his travel to Turkey lifted…”Turkey and Japan sign formal agreement to build second nuclear plant in Sinop
4. Erdoğan’s palace to be protected by commandos… Open Source Analysis of The IS Attack on Kobane… “NATO calls on Turkey to join EU sanctions against Russia as Putin visits Ankara…
5. After Cameron (@David_Cameron) and Mogherini (@FedericaMog) break, Turkey can go back to its course of religious authoritarianism…

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