The Kurdish question in Iraq
Edmund Ghareeb
Syracuse University
The Kurds have long been a problem to those countries they inhabit, primarily Iraq, Iran, and Turkey. Edmund Ghareeb examines the history of the Kurdish issue in Iran and Turkey and then concentrates on Iraq, chronicling the Iraqi Baath government’s attempts since 1968 to achieve a political understanding with the Kurds concerning their status in Northern Iraq. The failure of both sides to reach agreement contributed to widespread Kurdish armed rebellion, which was encouraged by covert Iranian, American, and Israeli assistance.
Drawing upon extensive personal interviews with pro - and anti - Baath Kurdish leaders, including Mulla Mustafa al-Barzani and members of his family, Iraqi government and Baath party officials, and U.S. government officials, Ghareeb discusses in detail the positions of the Baath and Kurdish leaders and the factors which led to the failure of negotiations between them and, ultimately, to the collapse of the Kurdish rebellion itself.
Dr. Edmund Ghareeb is a specialist and consultant on Middle Eastern and press affairs. His works include The Kurdish Nationalist Movement and Split Vision: Arab Portrayal in the American Media. He has contributed numerous articles on Arab affairs to American, European and Middle Eastern journals.
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