Kurds

Syria's U.S.-backed Kurdish coalition faces an uncertain future after Assad's ouster

4:14pm December 27, 2024

After Bashar al-Assad's ouster, there are questions about the fate of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the U.S.-backed Kurdish coalition that currently controls a third of Syrian territory.

Turkey looks set to play an outsize role in shaping the new Syria after Assad

2:32pm December 18, 2024

As the world watches Syria grapple with the aftermath of Bashar al-Assad's brutal regime and the formation of a new government, one neighbor has emerged as having great influence over the new Syria.

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Turkey hits Kurdish militant targets after a deadly attack on defense company

10:44am October 23, 2024

Turkey’s air force struck Kurdish militant targets in Iraq and Syria in apparent retaliation for an attack at a state-run defense company that killed five people and wounded more than a dozen others.

Iraqi Kurds go to the polls with a flagging economy top of mind

1:38am October 21, 2024

Parliamentary elections were postponed several times amid disputes over the election law and procedures.

Melike Bayar, 34, cries as she stands outside the building where her relatives died.

World News

After Turkey's quake, one family mourns its losses — and braces for more

5:03am February 14, 2023

As volunteers continue digging through the rubble of a collapsed apartment building, the siblings of a woman found dead with her four children are now awaiting news of their mother and another sister.

World News

Iran's protesters find inspiration in a Kurdish revolutionary slogan

11:31am October 27, 2022

"Jin, jiyan, azadi!" — "Woman, life, freedom!" — has become the rallying cry for people in Iran and beyond who are protesting the death of Mahsa Amini in Iranian police custody.

Chinese lecturer Zhiwei Hu speaks to students in the Chinese language department at Salahaddin University in Irbil, Iraq, Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2021.

World News

Iraqi Kurds are learning Mandarin to take advantage of jobs from Chinese companies

2:11am January 28, 2022

by The Associated Press

Dozens of contracts signed in recent years ensure China's growing footprint, even as major Western companies, including the U.S., plot their exit.

World News

Turkish Valley Home To Human Settlements For Millenia Soon Will Be A Lake

8:03am December 01, 2019

by Durrie Bouscaren

In southeastern Turkey, an ancient town that has long been associated with the region's Kurdish heritage is slated to be flooded by a massive dam project on the Tigris River.

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Aid workers dish up rice and stew to refugees at the Gawilan camp in northern Iraq. The camp has accommodated nearly 2,000 new arrivals in the past month.

World News

Syrian Kurdish Refugees Say Kurdish Forces Tried To Prevent Them From Fleeing To Iraq

7:09pm November 07, 2019

by Fatma Tanis

"They told us, even if you stand here for 100 years, we are not going to let you cross," one refugee who made it to an Iraqi camp tells NPR. Many have resorted to paying smugglers to help them cross.

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Mazloum Abdi, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces speaks to reporters near the northeastern Syrian Hassakeh province on Thursday.

Turkey Warns U.S. Against Hosting Syrian Kurdish Military Commander

5:16pm October 25, 2019

by David Welna

Turkey says U.S. officials should not meet with Syrian Democratic Forces chief Mazloum Abdi, whom Ankara considers a terrorist. In Syria, U.S. forces are preparing to protect the eastern oil fields.