The word of theKurds |
Most Kurds live in a mainly mountainous region called Kurdistan, the homeland of the Kurds. The total Kurdish population is estimated at 31 million. The Kurds were promised their own state in the 1920 Treaty of Sevres, which carved up the Ottoman Empire after its defeat in World War I. But Turkey subsequently forced a renegotiation of the treaty, leaving the Kurds as a nation without a state, and their homeland was divided to few parts, the biggest was given to Turks who has led very brutal crack downs since the take over Kurdistan, and have ruthlessly till today, drawn a policy of ethnic Cleansing, genocide and banning of Kurdish
language. the total of the Kurds living in this part are estimated at over 17millions.The have no cultural rights neither could express their identity till a few years ago. There is an aggressive war against the Kurds costing the lives of over 30.000 peoples and the destruction of thousands of villages by the hands of the Turkish generals. Click here to view the atrocities of the Turkish army in Kurdistan The second biggest part of Kurdistan was given to Iran, in this particural part, and in the year 1946, the Kurds led by Qazi Mohammed, a popular Kurdish leader, have proclaimed independence from Iran. but after the withdrawal of the Soviet Unions Red army troops from Iran, the Shah pahlavi crushed the Independant Mahabad Republic and executed Qazi Mohammed and other fellow comrades. There are a total estimated 7 million Kurds in this part. The third part was given to Iraq, there are estimated 5 million Kurds in this part wihich is in the north of the. This part has seen the most brutal masacres in the history. Since the Uprising of 1991 (following the second gulf war), the Kurds control %70 of Iraqi Kurdistan. There are many important, rich and strategic areas still held by saddam Hussein's regime, like Kirkuk, Khanaqin, Sinjar, Sheikhan, Jalawla and others. the kurds living in these areas are subjects to many unhuman policies like ethnic cleansing, interogations, intimidations, discrimination and their properties are being confiscated by pro-regime Arabs. There are a total of 1million Kurds living in Syria, and they have been denied of any Cultural rights and there are as many as 150.000 Kurds who were denied of issuing Identity cards, they have no rights to attend schools and to own any properties. there are an estimated 100.000 Kurds in Lebanon and over 500.000 in the Caucasus region of the former Soviet Union Republics, like Armenia, Azerbeijan and others who were for so called security reasons spread all over former soviet union republics by Stalin. There are estimated 600.000 Kurdish migrants in Europe, in which Germany forms a refuge for 500.000. these Kurds have mainly left their homeland to avoid executions. the Kurds are of Hindo-Europeans tribes who migrated from the caucasus mountains 3.000 years ago.their language is Iranian. Most Kurds were converted to Islam in the 7th century; they are predominantly Sunnite Muslims. Before embracing Islam, they wre like Persians, Beluches, Afghans and others, practicing the Zorastorian religion. The Kurds traditionally herded sheep and goats in the mountains they have occupied since prehistoric times. Today many Kurds still take their livestock to mountain pastures in summer and return to valley villages in winter. Most Kurds are settled farmers, however. While nomadic groups retain the traditional tribal organization under chiefs, some settled Kurds have become urbanized and assimilated into their respective nations.
The Kurds have repeatedly tried to become independent. They have fought the Sumerians, Assyrians, Persians, Mongols, European crusaders, and Turks. One of their great
leaders was Salahaddin Al-Ayyubi He was a Kurd from Tikrit, he formed a strong army from brave Kurds and fighted the crusaders in the Muslim world. He and his Kurdish successors, have ruled the Muslim world for decades under the flag of Islam. It was in the eras that religion was upon all nationalistic goals. |