Kurds

Members of Iraq's security forces stand guard on the the al-Rabia border crossing with Syria on April 20, 2026.

How Syria's border opening with Iraq redefines Turkey-Kurd balance

After years of closure, the reopening of al-Yaaroubiya crossing is redrawing Kurdish economic leverage and reinforcing Turkey’s regional strategy.

Kurdish people waving Kurdistan flags gather to celebrate Nowruz on the hill of Urkesh in the countryside of Amuda in northeastern Syria on March 18, 2026. Nowruz, meaning "new day," is an ancient festival that marks the start of spring and the new year on the vernal equinox, which usually falls on March 20 or 21. It is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been observed for over 3,000 years across regions including the Middle East, Central Asia, the Caucasus and parts of Eastern Euro

Analysis

Is Syria’s Sharaa poised to outdo Turkey in formalizing gains for Kurds?

Damascus is making limited but tangible progress in its engagement with Syrian Kurds, even as Ankara seeks to shape the terms of any settlement.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

A armed Kurdish Peshmerga of the Komala party waves the Komala flag in a ceremony held in memory of Komala Martyrs' Day in Sidakan, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, on March 17, 2021.

Interview

Despite Trump’s U-turns, US may still support Iran’s Kurds, says Komala’s Mohtadi

In an exclusive interview, the Komala leader discusses US backing, Kurdish ambitions and Trump’s shifting stance.

Abdulla Mohtadi

Leader of Komala

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) walks with Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif upon his arrival during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on June 1, 2022. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Inside Turkey’s role in the US-Iran ceasefire

Turkey used its intelligence networks and rare access to both Washington and Tehran to quietly facilitate the US-Iran ceasefire while advancing its own regional security priorities.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Analysis

Hostage to Hormuz, can Gulf rewire future energy flows to bypass Iran’s chokepoint?

A police speed boat patrols the port as oil tankers and high speed crafts sit anchored at Muscat Anchorage near the Strait of Hormuz on March 30, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

How the Iran war is giving Turkey's Erdogan a big boost

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to MPs at his party's group meeting in the Turkish parliament on Jan. 21, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Analysis

Iran's first strike on Iraqi Kurdish forces since war began a warning to US allies

An Iranian Kurdish peshmerga member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran inspects the damage sustained at the Azadi Camp following an Iranian cross-border attack in the town of Koye, east of Erbil district, on March 3, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Exclusive

Iraqi oil flows to Turkey after US pledges role in Baghdad-Kurds customs dispute

A view of the oil refinery on March 17, 2026 in Erbil, Iraq.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Iraqi migrants who were flown home from the Belarusian capital Minsk, arrive at the airport in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's northern autonomous Kurdish region, on Nov. 26, 2021.

Iraq repatriates more citizens from Belarus

The Kurdistan Regional Government previously reported that it had helped bring more than 1,800 people home from the Belarus-Poland border.

US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm speaks during the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference.

The Takeaway: Iran nuclear talks resume next week — What you need to know

Turkish lira crisis hits Syria; Saudi, Syrian intel chiefs talk; Netflix drama evokes memories for Izmir’s Jews; Oman bets on logistics; Egypt, Tanzania deepen ties; Gaza’s women skateboarders — all in less than 1,500 words.

Andrew Parasiliti

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Joe Snell

By Andrew Parasiliti , Elizabeth Hagedorn , Joe Snell

Mazlum Kobane (Mazlum Abdi), commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces.

Syrian Kurdish commander says Russia opposes further Turkish land grabs

Mazlum Kobane, commander in chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, also says Damascus is not yet ready for negotiations.

A displaced Yazidi casts her vote for the parliamentary elections at a camp some 15 kilometers from the northern city of Dahuk in the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region, on Oct. 8, 2021.

Iraq's elections weaken PKK in Sinjar

Iraq's October elections may have strengthened the Iraqi Kurdistan administration's hands in the Yazidi enclave of Sinjar.

Turkish President and leader of the Justice and Development Party Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkey’s parliament votes to extend mandate for troops in Iraq, Syria

The main opposition CHP announced an hour before the session that it would vote against the motion.

Judge Jalil Adnan Khalaf, chairman of Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission, speaks in Baghdad on Oct. 12, 2021.

Iraq's election results put militias between rock and hard place

Political parties affiliated with Iraqi militias faced significant defeat, while their ally Nouri al-Maliki earned a remarkable victory.

Turkish and Russian military vehicles patrol in the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province near the Turkish border, on Sept. 16, 2021.

Ankara hints at new Syria operation after spate of attacks near border

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the nation “would do what is necessary” to clear Syrian border areas of Kurdish militants after missile attacks killed two Turkish police officers Sunday.

A Syrian man walks past destruction in the northern city of Aleppo on March 22, 2013.

Syrian opposition chief: US sanctions a deterrent for Turkish proxy fighters

During an interview with Al-Monitor, Syrian National Coalition President Salem al-Meslet discussed recent US sanctions on Ahrar al-Sharqiya, the human rights situation in northern Syria and the US military presence in the war-torn country.

KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images

Syrian Kurds, opposition take cases to Washington

Delegations from Kurdish-held northeast Syria and the Turkey-backed Syrian National Coalition will meet separately with US officials this week.

A picture taken on January 13, 2020, during a press tour organised by the US-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group, shows a member the US forces walking past a drone in the Ain al-Asad airbase in the western Iraqi province of Anbar.

Are Iranian threats to escalate in Iraqi Kurdistan more hot air?

Members of the anti-Iranian group, the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan.

Iranian security official tells Iraq to expel Iranian Kurdish groups

Iranian officials have been criticizing Kurdish parties from Iran who have a presence in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where they are regularly targeted by the Iranian military.

A flag of the Islamic State (IS) is seen on the other side of a bridge at the frontline of fighting between Kurdish peshmerga forces and Islamist militants in Rashad, on the road between Kirkuk and Tikrit, on Sept. 11, 2014.

Iraqi PM vows to fix Kirkuk security issues after gruesome Islamic State attack

Following an Islamic State attack in which over a dozen Iraqi policemen were killed, the prime minister criticized military leaders’ “shortcomings” and pledged to address the issue. Meanwhile, counterterrorism operations continue in the same disputed province to prevent further attacks.