Kurds in Iran

What might Iran look like if the current clerical regime falls? After twelve days of attacks from Israel – and later also the United States – speculation is growing about a possible regime change. Although Iran and Israel have now signed a ceasefire, both political and military actors are preparing for a possible power vacuum.

The US has long navigated difficult choices in the Middle East, often allying with imperfect actors to achieve broader strategic goals. The most recent case is direct engagement with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) to undermine the Assad regime in Syria. With Iran remaining one of Washington’s primary challenges in the region, a similar intervention involving an opposition with a different mindset could serve the US and Israel’s interests in pursuing regime change.
This piece addresses Iran’s destabilizing role in the Middle East, the systemic oppression of its Kurdish population, and the strategic opportunity for the U.S. to weaken Tehran by supporting Kurdish opposition groups advocating for democracy and autonomy. Drawing lessons from Syria, it argues for aligning with moderate, secular actors to avoid empowering extremists, while emphasizing that this approach avoids direct U.S. military involvement in a volatile region.

The case of Kurdistan remains one of the most pressing yet unresolved issues in the Middle East, shaping the region’s political and security landscape. For over a century, Kurds have faced systemic repression and exclusion by Turkey and Iran, both of which have alternated between superficial outreach and entrenched denial of Kurdish rights. However, the rise of Kurdish political and military forces in Iraq and Syria, alongside shifting regional dynamics, has brought the Kurdistan question to the forefront of Middle Eastern geopolitics. This article examines the critical crossroads faced by Turkey and Iran: whether to embrace substantive recognition of Kurdish identity, rights, and autonomy or to continue policies of denial and repression, risking greater instability and unrest. By unpacking the historical and constitutional challenges both states face, the article argues that resolving the Kurdistan question is essential not only for the Kurds but also for the broader stability and future of the Middle East.

Although nationalism is honored alongside the Islamic unity in the upstream documents of the government, in practice this concept has not been streamed in the next layers and has resulted in uncertainties and , therefore, has harassed cultural and public policy makers in this area, knowingly or unknowingly.
Policymakers create a hermeneutic situation for themselves as a result of every stance they take, and their a posteriori understanding is under the impact of their a priori one. These are hermeneutic situation creators some of which have key roles in giving rise to a chain of hermeneutic situations in the domain of nationalism.
In this research, by using the thematic analysis method, “conflict situations in the domain of nationalism, based on six sources including upstream documentation, statements by Imam Khomeini and Supreme Leader of the Revolution, strategies and policies adopted by governments, comments by the authorities, elite and educators, models and patterns of public and cultural policy, and also 21 dilemmas of the Council of Europe are extracted , and also by using the ISM method the key hermeneutical situation creators are identified and explained. In the end, the most important hermeneutical challenges in the domain of nationalism based on hermeneutical situation creator relationships in the nationalism domain, have been analyzed.

Between 2009 and 2011, the Kurdish sculptor Hadî Ziaoddînî created
a statue of poet Mestûre Erdalan (1805–1847), in the city of Sine
(Sanandaj, Iranian Kurdistan or Rojhelat). A woman standing,
carrying a book in her hand, the figure of Mestûre is unique in the
Islamic Republic of Iran. She is not wearing the obligatory hijab but
a Kurdish kofî. This paper presents the evolving representation and
reception of Mestûre, the first Kurdish female poet and chronicler.
The existing research on heritage in Iran focuses mainly on the
policies of Pahlavi and Islamic regimes, tourism and conservation.
This paper reveals the dissonant heritage-making that inspires
Kurdish ethnic and national identity and the empowerment of
women in Iran. The latter gained momentum, especially after the
killing of the Kurdish woman, Jîna (Mahsa) Amînî, by the morality
police in 2022. The multi-layered heritage performance engages
identity politics, artistic creation and the new practice of visiting
the statue of Mestûre. Starting from Ziaoddînî’s work as the focal
point of discussion, the study identifies various links between the
statue and other artistic products, as well as investigates the
contemporary relationship between Mestûre and the inhabitants
of Sine. The relationship is mediated by the sculpture and the
moral imagination it stirs in empowering Kurdish women.

This paper examines the impact that cross-border contacts and ideals of transnational Kurdish community have on Kurds in Iran. Incorporating survey and interview data from Iranian Kurdish academics, journalists and activists, it analyses how events in the broader Kurdistan region, and the notion of Kurdayetîpan-Kurdish identityare perceived by Kurds and how these phenomena affect the Kurdish issue. Within the context of long-standing political grievances, the findings highlight an atmosphere of distrust pervading the relationship between the Islamic Republic of Iran and its Kurds, and reveals that as Kurds find it difficult to identify with the Iranian state they turn towards their cross-border ethnic kin. Yet, despite increasing cross-border interaction and recent advances for Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, internal and external dynamics curtail Iranian Kurds' political ambitions and preclude secessionist impulses.

The Kurdish population in Iran feels disenfranchised and excluded from the political system. Based on an original survey of Iranian Kurds, it is revealed that Kurds lack trust and confidence in the central government and do not exhibit any emotional connection with Iranian identity or the Islamic Republic of Iran. Overwhelmingly, survey respondents put their Kurdish identity and affiliations as the primary point of reference. This emotional and political disconnect with Iran poses a serious challenge to the incumbent regime. It is an affront to the official rhetoric of ethnic unity and Iranian solidarity that is reinforced by Islamic principles under the Islamic Republic of Iran. This has led the incumbent regime to opt for a security response to a clearly political challenge. However, as the survey data in this research reveals, the securitisation of Iran's response to its Kurdish population is only widening the gap, and aggravating the situation. The securitised approach to Kurdish aspirations for inclusion and acceptance is a counterproductive strategy with significant risks for the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Some years ago, I had written that the Iranian Clergy must take into account that 50% of all Iranians were under the age of 35 years old. And they had to consider the fact that through Travel, the Media, Education, and advances in Communications, Iranians were being exposed to cultures all over Earth.

And I had suggested that as long as the essence of the Faith was understood, there was Order and Peace in the community, that individuals conformed to an Ethical Framework with a Code of Conduct within and between themselves in appropriate environments, the Clergy must not interfere in the lives of the citizens.

I do not know all the details about the recent events with reference to the head scarves. All I know is that 10 lives were lost.

I would also like to suggest that the Clergy should do away with the Morality Police; the Clergy should be more concerned with Drugs, Alcohol, Homelessness, Poverty, and Unemployment under the Police and the Ministries of Health, Housing and Employment. If there are riots, demonstrations, the Morality Police must never ever use live ammunition. High powered water cannons, shields and batons would be okay. Excessive force resulting in death must never be used.

And, the Clergy must remember that this happened in the Kurdish area to a Kurdish woman. Some may look at this as how Minorities are being treated as in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Syria, Iraq and Turkey. The West will pounce on this as well. It is a suggestion that Iran (and others) should look at Constitutional Theocracy as a form of Government where the Clergy is there to give advice and not impose. This will resolve all the challenges including those of the Minorities.

Lapid like his predecessor Bennet and Netanyahu is lying. His speech at the UN was full of lies. Zionist Leadership continue the implementation of Herzl's Manifesto - evict the Palestinians, if this fails then expel them; if this also fails raze their homes and take over their land, and last if all else fails then kill them.

In their hearts, The Israel Leadership want to drive all Palestinians into the
Mediterranean Sea?

This article highlights the fact that Mahsa Amini, the woman whose death sparked protests for woman, life and freedom, is Kurdish and her real name is Jina Aimini. It discusses why acknowledging her Kurdish name matters. It provides a break down of the cultural genocide and assimilation legacy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in regards to the Kurds and other ethnic communities living in Iran.

This paper examines the impact that cross-border contacts and ideals of transnational Kurdish community have on Kurds in Iran. Incorporating survey and interview data from Iranian Kurdish academics, journalists and activists, it analyses how events in the broader Kurdistan region, and the notion of Kurdayetîpan-Kurdish identityare perceived by Kurds and how these phenomena affect the Kurdish issue. Within the context of long-standing political grievances, the findings highlight an atmosphere of distrust pervading the relationship between the Islamic Republic of Iran and its Kurds, and reveals that as Kurds find it difficult to identify with the Iranian state they turn towards their cross-border ethnic kin. Yet, despite increasing cross-border interaction and recent advances for Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, internal and external dynamics curtail Iranian Kurds' political ambitions and preclude secessionist impulses.

The Kurdish population in Iran feels disenfranchised and excluded from the political system. Based on an original survey of Iranian Kurds, it is revealed that Kurds lack trust and confidence in the central government and do not exhibit any emotional connection with Iranian identity or the Islamic Republic of Iran. Overwhelmingly, survey respondents put their Kurdish identity and affiliations as the primary point of reference. This emotional and political disconnect with Iran poses a serious challenge to the incumbent regime. It is an affront to the official rhetoric of ethnic unity and Iranian solidarity that is reinforced by Islamic principles under the Islamic Republic of Iran. This has led the incumbent regime to opt for a security response to a clearly political challenge. However, as the survey data in this research reveals, the securitisation of Iran's response to its Kurdish population is only widening the gap, and aggravating the situation. The securitised approach to Kurdish aspirations for inclusion and acceptance is a counterproductive strategy with significant risks for the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Na xebate, sebebanê ereymendişê romanê Zazakî sero munaqaşa kena û nê sebaban dana verê çiman. Hetê ereymendişê romanê Zazakî de sebebanê polîtîk sero yew panaromaya kronolojîk dana. Wertevêjîyayişê romanê Zazakî de rolê dîyasporayî sero vindena. Mîyanê xebatanê edebî yê Zazakî de hetê tarixê edebîyatê Zazakî de hetanî ewro romano tewr verên sey Klama Pepûgî yeno qebul kerdene. Armancê na xebate no yo ke; tarixê edebîyatê Zazakî de zanayişê romano yewinî sero de yew îddîaya newe do bierzo werte. Îddîayê na xebate na ya ke; Klama Pepûgî ra ver, eserê Dêrsim’ra ve Dare Estene Seyit Rıza ke çap bîyo. Na xebate de eserê Dêrsim’ra ve Dare Estene Seyit Rızayî bi metodanê analîzê romanî do bêro analîzkerdene.

ქურთები მსოფლიოში ერთ-ერთი უძველესი და მრავალრიცხოვანი ეთნიკური ჯგუფია. ისინი მრავალი საუკუნეა ცხოვრობენ ახლო აღმოსავლეთის იმ ტერიტორიაზე, რომელიც ქურთისტანის სახელწოდებითაა ცნობილი. დღეს ქურთები ახლო აღმოსავლეთის რეგიონის ოთხ სახელმწიფოში არიან წარმოდგენილნი და მრავალი წელია იბრძვიან ავტონომიისა და დამოუკიდებლობის მოსაპოვებლად. ქურთების საკითხი საერთაშორისო პოლიტიკაში XIX საუკუნეში გააქტიურდა. იგი, ერთი მხრივ, განპირობებული იყო მსოფლიოში ეროვნულ- განმათავისუფლებელი მოძრაობების დაწყებით, ხოლო, მეორე მხრივ, ახლო აღმოსავლეთის ქვეყნების საშინაო პოლიტიკაში ევროპული სახელმწიფოების ჩარევით, რის გამოც იგი გასცდა რეგიონული პოლიტიკის საზღვრებს და საერთაშორისო საკითხად გადაიქცა. საერთაშორისო დონეზე დეკლარირებული თვითგამორკვევის უფლებისა და ახლო აღმოსავლეთში სამანდატო სისტემის ამოქმედების მიუხედავად, ქურთებმა, ობიექტური და სუბიექტური მიზეზების გამო, მაინც ვერ მოახერხეს სახელმწიფოს შექმნა. პირველი ომის დასრულების შემდეგ ქურთები რეგიონის ოთხი სახელმწიფოს საზღვრებში გადანაწილდნენ და სწორედ ამ პერიოდიდან ჩაეყარა საფუძველი მათ აქტიურ ეროვნულ-განმათავისუფლებელ მოძრაობებს ცალკეულ ქვეყნებში, რაც დღემდე დაუსრულებლად და უშედეგოდ მიმდინარეობს.
Kurds are one of the oldest and largest ethnic groups in the world. For many centuries they lived in the Middle Eastern region called Kurdistan. Today, Kurds are represented in four states of the Middle East region and have been fighting for autonomy and independence for many years. The Kurdish problem became active in international politics in the 19th century, which led to the beginning of national liberation movements in the world and the involvement of European states in Middle Eastern politics. Consequently, it became an international issue. After the end of the WWI, despite certain changes in overall discourse the Kurds were dispersed within the borders of the four states of the region, and it was from this period that the foundations of their active national liberation movements in individual countries were laid, which are still endless and fruitless.

Golli Shorran, written by Atta Nahai, is a well-known Kurdish novel that presents a different narrative of the life and history of the Kurds in the era of the Second World War. By different narratives, we mean that this novel challenges two dominant historical narratives about the subaltern Kurds: orientalism and Iranian Nationalism. These two metanarratives often use a kind of writing and discourse which ignores the voice and experience of these subaltern people and reproduces their subaltern position. This research claims that some Kurdish novels (hear Golli Shorran) provide a counter-narrative and deconstruct dominant historical representations of Kurds. The main question is that how do these novel challenges these grand narrative and through which devices and mechanisms? We have explored this issue by using postcolonial theories and deconstruction methodological tools. The findings show that Golly Shoran has provided a different story about the historical subaltern conditions of the Kurds and deconstructed the binary oppositions through which the dominant historiography has pictured Kurdish culture and history. So this novel provides a different picture of the Kurds and their historical lived experiences, something which is almost perfectly ignored in orientalism and Iranian nationalism. In this way, it deconstructs these two metanarratives.

The representation of Kurds in post-revolutionary Iranian cinema is based on a binary opposition according to which they are either a traditional, hospitable and simple-hearted people or some aggressive, deceived and restive one. This picture which has been shown especially in a genre named Defamogadas and some other films and serials was itself the result of tensions that occurred during the early years of the revolution and Iraq war. After the war, this image of the Kurds changed gradually. Some writers and artists tended to represent a more realistic image of this ethnic group. Takhtesyah and Bad Ma ra Khahad Bord are the products of this period. These two films were produced at the end of eightieth and tried to show a very different picture of the Kurds. This article attempts to interpret this image using postcolonial theoretical concepts and symptomatic reading in methodology. The findings show that the image of the Kurds in these two films is made through using old and common perceptions of them in Iranian oral culture. According to this perception, the Kurds are identified with images like pure nature, old lifestyle, simple-mindedness and resistance to progress.

In an attempt to decolonize Kurdistan, at least discursively, Kurds refer to the Kurdish region of Iran as Rojhelat, instead of Iranian Kurdistan. Rojhelat, meaning “the place where the sun rises,” refers to the eastern portion of Kurdistan—the Kurdish homeland that stretches across four countries. This terminology has been encouraged since the late 1990s by the expansion of Kurdish media—and especially Kurdish satellite television stations—that use Rojhelat in programming that addresses Kurds around the world. The name reflects the understanding that the Kurdish region of western and northwestern Iran is part of a broader set of Kurdish lands, societies and economies that includes Rojava (northern and northeastern Syria), Bakur (eastern and southeastern Turkey) and Başur (northern Iraq).[1] The change in nomenclature reflects new patterns and modes of struggle in the political life of Kurds living under the Iranian state.

ქურთების საკითხი ერთ-ერთ რთულ და გადაუჭრელ პრობლემად ითვლება ახლო აღმოსავლეთის რეგიონში. მიუხედავად იმისა, რომ ქურთები რეგიონში მრავალი საუკუნეა ცხოვრობენ, მათ დღემდე არ გააჩნიათ საკუთარი სახელმწიფო. სხვადასხვა სტატისტიკური მონაცემების მიხედვით მსოფლიოში 35-45 მილიონამდე ქურთია. რეგიონში ისინი წარმოდგენილნი არიან ოთხ სახელმწიფოში, ესენია: თურქეთი, ერაყი, სირია და ირანი. ირანში მცხოვრები ქურთები, რომლებიც სხვა დანარჩენი ქურთების მსგავსად ავტონომიის მოთხოვნით გამოდიან, ხშირად აწყდებიან წინააღმდეგობებს ირანის ხელისუფლების მხრიდან, რის გამოც მთავრობამ ეთნიკურ ნიადაგზე აღმოცენებული პარტიები და დაჯგუფებები საერთოდ აკრძალა ქვეყანაში. ავტონომიისა და დამოუკიდებლობის მოპოვების მიზნით, გასულ საუკუნეში, ირანში რამდენიმე ქურთული პოლიტიკური პარტია ჩამოყალიბდა. ისინი ავტონომიის მოპოვების გარდა ირანის დემოკრატიულ, სეკულარულ და ფედერაციულ სახელმწიფოდ გარდაქმნას უჭერენ მხარს. ქურთულ პოლიტიკურ პარტიებსა და დაჯგუფებებს მნიშვნელოვანი როლი აკისრიათ, რადგანაც ქურთული იდენტობის შენარჩუნება მათი აქტიური პოლიტიკური და სამხედრო საქმი- ანობის შედეგია. ირანელი ქურთების მიერ შექმნილი პარტიები თურქეთის, სირიისა და ერაყის ქურთულ დაჯგუფებებთან ერთად აქტიურად იბრძვიან ისლამური სახელმწიფოს წინააღმდეგ.

საკვანძო სიტყვები: ახლო აღმოსავლეთი, ქურთები, ირანელი ქურთები, ქურთისტანი, ქურთული პარტიები.

The Kurdish question is considered one of the most difficult and unresolved issues in the Middle East region. Although the Kurds have lived in this region for many centuries, they still do not have their own state. According to various statistics, there are 35-45 million Kurds scattered in the world. In the region, they are represented in four countries: Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran. Kurds living in Iran, who, like other Kurds, demand autonomy, often face resentment from the Iranian government, which is why the government has banned ethnic parties and groups in the country. To gain autonomy and independence, several Kurdish political parties were formed in Iran during the last century. Other than gaining autonomy, they also support the transformation of Iran into a democratic, secular and federal state. Kurdish political parties and groups play an important role as the preservation of Kurdish identity is the result of their strong engagement in political and military activities. The parties formed by Iranian Kurds, along with Kurdish groups in Turkey, Syria and Iraq, are actively fighting the Islamic State.

Keywords: The Middle East, Kurds, Iranian Kurds, Kurdistan, Kurdish Parties

Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in the Middle East, living in a wide ge- ography including Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria. They have emerged as one of the primary beneficiaries of the downfall of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and the collapse of Syria, and managed to carve out autonomous regions in both countries. While political differences between Kurdish groups in the region run deep, there is an increasing cross-pollination between them with signifi- cant moral, material and human resources shared between Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. Kurdish politics and issues in those countries are now intrinsically linked to each other.
Therefore, the one line of analysis that is no longer valid is to regard the Kurds solely as a sub-category of politics in each of these countries. Such a view prevents one from seeing the collaboration between Kurdish groups in different countries, which was crucial in the rise of the Kurds in Syria in recent years. This briefing paper will explain the dynamic political situation in the Kurdish regions of Syria, Iraq, Turkey and Iran while addressing the issues relevant to the broader dynamics of Kurdish politics that affect the larger Kurdish landscape. It thereby aims to help decision makers to devel- op more comprehensive policies on Kurds that go beyond the political groups claiming to represent the Kurdish populations across the borders in the Middle East.

Under Hassan Rouhani a so-called moderate executions have spiralled. The clamp down on all forms of freedom of expression and of personal choice continues. Political dissidents face execution for 'enmity to God' offences. Unfair trials abound. Vested interests of major stakeholders in the economy