Kurds

October 24, 2024 | |

Turkey Strikes Kurdish Positions in Iraq and Syria After Blaming PKK for Attack in Ankara

The Turkish air force carried out 47 strikes on Kurdish targets in both Iraq and Syria overnight on October 23-24, according to statements by the country’s Ministry of National...

October 22, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Kurdistan regional elections mark a step forward for Iraq’s stability

Elections in the Kurdistan region are important because they provide a beacon of democracy for the region.

October 20, 2024 | Behnam Ben Taleblu, John Hardie

Iran’s Ballistic Missile Gift to Russia—And Vice Versa

Iran's missile transfers to Russia could make its missile program a more potent threat to U.S. forces, Israel, and other targets in the Middle East.

October 3, 2024 | |

Israel Helps Yazidi ‘Bride’ Escape Gaza

Israeli forces enabled the escape from Gaza of a Yazidi woman who had been brought there as a sex slave from Iraq, the Israeli military revealed on October 3. Fawzia Amin Sido...

October 3, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iran’s Great Ballistic Missile Attack Gamble

The October 1 attack by Iran is its largest gamble yet. It knows Israel is primed to respond. It knows that Israel has backing from the West. It also knows Israel significantly weakened Hamas and Hezbollah, removing two of the Iranian-backed fronts against Israel. Nevertheless, Iran’s regime believes it is stronger than it was in the past and ready to confront Israel.

October 1, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Israel and its Western allies should now strike back against Iran

When Iranians see that their regime is a paper tiger they will be emboldened

September 27, 2024 | Ben Cohen |

When it comes to Iran’s rulers, there can be no dialogue

Ruling mullahs duly rolled into New York City to attend the U.N. General Assembly, led by Iran’s new “moderate” president, Masoud Pezeshkian.

September 27, 2024 | Tzvi Kahn |

U.S. Should Sanction Iran’s Brutal Judge Iman Afshari

The death sentences keep coming from Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court. In July, the court’s presiding judge, Iman Afshari, pronounced the dreaded verdict for Pakhshan Azizi, a prominent...

September 25, 2024 | Sinan Ciddi, Sophia Epley

Washington Should Demand Turkey Donate its S-400 Missiles to Ukraine and the U.S.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on the United States to lift a broad array of sanctions that impede the ability of the two NATO allies to hit long-term bilateral trade targets. The request...

September 25, 2024 | Clifford D. May |

Israel sends beepers into the battle with Hezbollah

While Biden sounds another retreat

September 17, 2024 | |

Hamas, Houthis Open Offices in Iraq

Hamas and the Houthi rebels in Yemen — both Iran-backed terror groups — quietly established political offices in Iraq over the summer, The New York Times revealed on September...

September 16, 2024 | |

Iranians Commemorate Mahsa Amini on Second Anniversary of Her Murder

The second anniversary of the killing of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was marked in Iran and around the world on September 16 amid a media blackout ordered by Iran’s rulers. The young...

September 11, 2024 | |

26 Human Rights Groups Denounce Iran’s Death Sentence Against Prominent Activist

Iran must rescind its death sentence against Kurdish women’s rights activist and social worker Pakhshan Azizi, a group of 26 human rights organizations said in a joint statement...

September 11, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iranian President Pezeshkian’s visit to Iraq boosts economic ties and diplomacy

Iranian President Pezeshkian is visiting Iraq to strengthen economic ties and diplomatic relations, focusing on cooperation and Shi'ite shrines.

September 6, 2024 | Ben Cohen |

Polio vaccination campaign gives lie to claims of Israeli ‘genocide’

It’s hard to think of another state, particularly one enveloped in a war of survival, which would go to such lengths to protect children in the combat zone from a devastating illness.

September 5, 2024 | Sinan Ciddi, Sophia Epley

U.S. Marines in Turkey Assaulted by Nationalist Youth Group

Two U.S. Marines in Turkey were assaulted on Monday by more than a dozen members of the Turkish Youth Union (TYU), a secular nationalist youth group opposed to U.S. and European Union influence in the...

August 31, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iraqi-US raid on ISIS shows group is still a threat

The recent US raid on ISIS in Iraq highlights the group's ongoing threat and the crucial role of coalition forces in maintaining regional stability.

August 29, 2024 | Sinan Ciddi, Sophia Epley

Syria’s Assad Rebuffs Erdogan’s Effort to Normalize Ties

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told the country’s parliament on August 25 that initiatives to revive relations with Turkey had not yielded “any results worth mentioning despite the seriousness and...

August 7, 2024 | |

Iran Executes Protestor for Alleged Role in 2022 Uprising

The Islamic Republic executed a protestor arrested for his role in Iran’s nationwide protests that began in September 2022, The New York Times reported on August 6. Authorities...

August 4, 2024 | Behnam Ben Taleblu |

The Islamic Republic prepares to avenge Ismail Haniyeh

“Bloodlust” is a term cascading across the Iranian media space this week: “Bloodlust is commanded,” declared Jam-e Jam newspaper, connected to Iran’s state-sanctioned...