A Sept. 11 drone attack on Erbil International Airport, which flanks an air base at which US forces are present, did not leave any casualties. It did, however, serve as a reminder that those wanting all US presence out of the Middle East, and who consider anyone working with the US forces an enemy, are able to conduct attacks even in a part of Iraqi territory with very close relations with the United States.

A deadlier attack on the same location earlier this year had been claimed by murky Iraqi Shiite jihadist armed groups with links to Iran.

Meanwhile, the Sunni Arab community from both eastern Syria and parts of western Iraq seem to be creating stronger bonds with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq — or at least seeing it as a place of refuge from increasing attacks by sectarian armed groups.

Long-simmering grievances against Iraqi Shiite armed groups linked to Iran are shared by both communities in areas where these armed groups continue to operate and many families from Iraq’s Sunni-dominant Anbar, Ninevah and Salahuddin provinces spent years in Iraqi Kurdistan after fleeing the Islamic State (IS) before being able to return to their home provinces, forming bonds with the local community.