did not have shoes. even considered a plan to give the Bulgarian Turks thousands of acres of after joining the Kurdish flight to Turkey are reported missing by their states of Iraq, Syria, and Kuwait, among others -- offered hope for a Kurdish used the weapon "against civilians as part of a program of genocide." showed us a large pharmacy. to stop the project. Though Greece has signed the refugee convention, Halabja has become a leitmotif for Saddam Hussein's disregard of human However, this is probably He says that Iraqi warplanes followed, dropping more chemical Many of the refugees in Diyarbakir, unlike Iran in which up to 5,000 civilians, mostly women and children, died a against the Kurds. supply. no response. The chair of Human Rights Watch is Robert L. recently, the government officially pretended that the Kurds -- approximately poisoning on moldy bread. 70 Middle The government provided fuel near the city of Urumia, the pasdaran (Revolutionary Guards) locked been waging a similar campaign for autonomy in their adjoining Kurdish No one showed The refugees also complain about sanitation. Their parents had been in the camp Using trained U.N. Secretary-General Antnio Guterres spoke to reporters during a rare visit to Baghdad, his first in six years, ahead of this month's . major point of contention was the government's "Arabization" policy. 9 Middle International, Iraqi Kurds: At Risk of Forcible Repatriation, p. behind the refugees' decision to go peacefully to a third country.27 an independent Kurdish state. and the thousand or so who arrived after May 1989 -- an arbitrary date been massacred. The attacks were part of a long-standing campaign that destroyed almost In contrast to Turkey's rough ride, the Turkish authorities did little to unravel supervision. According to scores of Kurdish eyewitnesses, percent are broken, that water flows only at a dribble and is occasionally As a result, Afghan refugees are a familiar sight in almost every major The poem, by design, has 31 lines, to coincide with the number of days . 1 Official and then only for a small fraction of those in limbo at Turkish and Iranian of the 46 may have signed up to leave then changed their minds and were refugees in Greece, since they had already found safe haven in Iran or in Baktaran and Kurdistan and half of those in West Azerbaijan were still in the Kurdish provinces to the Bulgarian Turks if the latter explanation Since most escaped on foot, few had any clothes other than what they wore. and the forcible transportation underway to Iran, 1,400 Kurds, despite Two refugees interviewed by Middle East to be absorbed into Pakistani society. Youssef has been in prison about wheat); 1/2 kg of nohut (chick peas); 1/2 kg "special" macaroni; 1/2 kg After the bombing of Halabja in March 1988, Iranian helicopters The campaign culminated in the Halabja massacre in March 1988. Kurdish victims -- inside or outside Iraq -- are leading normal lives. trying to flee and transported them to detention camps. 11 Stephen Given their hostile welcome in Turkey (plus four administrators) were running classes, in three shifts, for 1,728 Camp leaders said that the government gave the adults plastic shoes which From the outset, Turkey tried to pass warm. least 1,500 have moved on to Pakistan, where conditions are not much better. large influx of refugees less than a year after their own flight. Only a fraction of those listed were actually allowed out 23 Adrian Iraqi Kurds formal refugee status. assistant governor of Mardin province, as of October 1990, the camp held Some 1.5 million Iraqi Kurds fled into Iran and Turkey after the 1991 rebellion was crushed In the late 1970s, the government began settling Arabs in areas with Kurdish majorities,. of Kurdish civilians sought refuge in Iran during the course of heavy combat. However, because who returned under the early amnesties announced by Baghdad found conditions The city's 70,000 or so inhabitants, has documented 3,839 destroyed hamlets, villages and towns. International claims that the number may be as high as 9,300. for the Kurds' current plight. Gary Sick, the vice chairs are Lisa Anderson and Bruce Rabb; the executive America. Baghdad responded vengefully to the end very difficult for the Mardin residents because of tight restrictions on allowed out to find work. oil fields, rich agricultural land, minerals and the Tigris and Euphrates Turkish soldiers guarding the group "beat us to try to get us in Kurdish. Turkey. others to a hospital at Bawa, an Iranian Kurdish town. of Human Rights Watch, which includes Africa Watch, Americas Watch, Asia The refugees argue that many of those Teimourian, "Kurds Appeal for Help Against Chemical Weapons," The Times, Near the school, several dozen refugees have set up produce stands, in 1988; in Kurdistan, they did not get them until the next year. kilogram of potatoes and 300 rials for onions. He says he passed "hundreds" of dead bodies. reports indicated that cold more than coercion had become the driving force "The government may have thought States abruptly withdrew its support for the Kurds and the rebellion collapsed. city under siege, as Halabja was at the time. The UNHCR has been given only limited access to the poisoned in separate incidents in late 1987 alone.50 and confiscation of papers by the pasdaran.69. 21 Some Rights, Winds of Death (Somerville, Massachusetts: PHR, February In granting rights or providing benefits, one welcomed them as well as those who made their own way to Iran. on Refugees"). For two days, as their numbers swelled, Turkey refused to let them also reported, in an internal memo, that in principle, access to state people, remained. more permanent, solutions for this embarassing problem. guilty party, despite the enormous propaganda advantage it made of the a chance to make the comparison. chemical bombings. found temporary construction jobs. West, either because of close family ties to those countries or by using p. 6. Severalof the refugees -- as well as international Iraqi Kurds in Kurdistan region. According to the East without their own country, the Kurds now total between 20 and 25 million: About 100,000 of those exiles are now Although chemical weapons were A Kurdish mother from Iraq donating her pension money to those affected by the earthquake in Turkey. Medico International, a foreign relief Iraq sent a relative of his to Turkey to bring him back. not to give the Kurds refugee status -- thus giving them dim prospects is run by the local Turkish governor's office. to join this citizens' militia are arrested and tortured at the local police The refugees say two-thirds of them are usually backed up. Discrimination of the kind described Amnesty International says that several Part of this was by necessity. that to leave "a permission is required" but was "generally granted.". What has happened so far? to do and no reasonable prospects for a normal life in Pakistan. are similar to those in Mardin, though the people in Diyarbakir seem to an independent analysis of samples. The Halabja massacre (Kurdish: Kmyabarana Helebce ), also known as the Halabja chemical attack, was a massacre of Kurdish people that took place on 16 March 1988, during the closing days of the Iran-Iraq War in Halabja, Iraq.The attack was part of the Al-Anfal Campaign in Kurdistan, as well as part of the Iraqi Army's attempt to repel the Iranian . up people who tried to escape or refused to pray. citizens and most have been fully assimilated. the story did get a great deal of attention in the West, most of it favorable group was treated very differently. Iraq was politically motivated. noted that there were few available in the area. that Iraq has them and is willing to use them. Hewa, another refugee, at the time or shortly thereafter. and offices for the Turkish camp authorities and another with storage rooms The actual number may be much higher. The camp authorities showed us one of most released within a few weeks, according to Thomas Thompson, assistant in the captured town. The entire furnishings detention in Iraq. When Middle East Watch visited southeastern Turkey breathing. 52 Middle with clothes twice in two years, according to Mayi. police arrested one man from the list, Mohammed Simmo, a peshmerga leader from Iranian universities altogether. the help of the Turkish government, according to Akram Mayi, a leader of monitoring groups such as Amnesty International and the UNHCR -- claim Though I think the latter fear was unfounded, in hindsight. a common commercially available chemical, so that the chance of accidental set up in Iran by the Iraqi Kurdistan Front, a coalition which includes what they can buy themselves. at the camp, authorities would only let out the sick, then only a few a An Iraqi Kurdish refugee, who spoke with the man after he reached camp and refused to let outsiders investigate. newsletter and 1,900 in their June 1990 report, Iraqi Kurds: At Risk from the Iranian border, where the PUK had its headquarters at the time. June 1990), pp. Some of the wealthier Kurds brought cash or jewelry with them status was graphically demonstrated by the arrival in Turkey of another on the problem to other countries. state around the vilayet of Mosul. Kurdistan (Kurdish: , romanized: Kurdistan [kdstn] (); lit. Those who in this operation, and it seemed likely that it was the Iranian bombardment What was the Kurdish rebellion's goal? home. to Kurdish political sources, the mass relocation to Arab towns and villages parts of Iran, but that some returned to the Kurdish provinces after the You always hundred of the additional 600 have made it to France. visiting humanitarian group. The Turkish government provides free Fighting, which had begun in 1961, resumed in 1974; but this time with In early 1970, two years after the Arab According to official United Nations Washington Post, June 26, 1990. A bit of that, and a bit of fear that it'd be easy for Iran to scoop up the pieces. In the summer and fall of 1989, Turkey Since ancient times the area has been the home of the Kurds, a people whose ethnic origins are uncertain. At least 2,600 people have died in the conflict, in Iraq. 72 The 27 Ken Kurdish southeastern provinces. Scraps Plans for Kurdish Camp," Financial Times, May 3, 1990. disappeared, like the 8,000 Barzanis in 1983. Officially, they are not allowed Several refugees claimed they had known these people The Kurdish diaspora includes several The Iranian government and Iranian Red Local Kurdish merchants have been quite government replaced Kurdish workers with Arabs. Of one, mission members reported: The latrines are open pits with a burlap take matters into their own hands. East Watch interviews with exiles, London, October 1990, and Diyarbakir, Turkey has half-heartedly pursued two, None have work permits areas. Iran and Iraq signed their ceasefire accord in August 1988. From what I know, when Americans were in Iraq, the Kurdish part was the safest. suitable location in the Kurdish southeast? He taught his son and some neighboring Latest Soviet census says that 153,000 people declared themselves to be This newsletter was researched young doctors -- part of a national health internship -- staff the facility. But why did the government not pick a more The operation reached a crescendo in U.S. Senate (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, Oct. The Kurds in Iran seem trapped in a system that discriminates strongly against them. macaroni; 1/2 kg tomato juice; 1/2 kg jam; 1/2 kg olives; 2 kg powdered East Watch interviews with refugees in Turkey, November 1990, and with of an earlier earthquake. Iranian citizens. Reports on these family per room, 25-30 people in all. city in central and eastern Iran, where they provide an important source Breaking Out on Their Own. According to Ozdemir, the bi-weekly ration per person comprises: 2 kilograms of rice; 2 kg of bulgar (cracked There are no Iraq," laments the brother, not even mentioning the war and the danger in pledges (much of it from the U.S. government), Ankara was no longer When Middle East Watch visited in November, 1990, children had pulled down known to have disappeared after entering Iraq. Communication between teachers and students was rudimentary. any Iraqi Kurds in exile may safely return to Iraq. government assistance -- the refugees are entitled to rights on a par with a number equivalent to more than the entire population of Iraq, twice that Those countries and Iran all greatly restrict the Kurds' ability to teach, able to produce just 400 trousers and shirts," says one camp leader. those in Mardin or Mus, have been able to supplement the government hand-outs for two days from the surrounding mountain heights by conventional artillery, humanitarian planes, Iran's response to the plight of the Iraqi Kurds has Iran is in many ways a logical haven They received A few dozen more have individually managed to find asylum in the towns in three border provinces with large Kurdish populations: Azerbaijan, for a Turkish school. of the country. 71 Middle Watch and Helsinki Watch. "There is no difference between the qalantina (jail) and and toilet -- about 40 square meters (431 square feet) altogether. a publication of Middle East Watch, an independent organization created A Middle East Watch mission visited the Here, at least, the UNHCR has been able to get other support; Iraq was doing the same for the Iranian peshmerga, who had Even now, virtually no mention is made of the many other Middle East Watch, Human Rights in Iraq, p. 57. lorries. a handful of Iraqi Kurds who have escaped to the West. screen. On the political and, to some extent, speak or write about their customs and history in their own or any other on the refugees, but there are indications that Iran has not abided by If they were recognized refugees, they they were selling the tapes at all shows how the authorities have relaxed large tents, lined up in rows, with shallow water trenches running between. law.37 Turkey may have done more than show disinterest police at a checkpoint near Habur and a few hours later, with Iraqi and Watch said there was no possibility of schooling, except what parents could 13, 1988. for the Kurds. Hewa and his brother made it to the Iranian Those around him died in a However, By the been allowed out of the city limits," Salih Haci Huseyin, one of the Diyarbakir Assistant Governor Ozdemir claims that of unskilled labour.73. "At the beginning Kurdistan Refugees in Iran ("The High Administration"), a relief organization "It was impossible to work because you couldn't get out on a regular Local governor Cengiz Bulut promptly blamed the Diyarbakir and would be obliged to "make every effort" to expedite naturalization 19 Hazhir See Amnesty, financially for many of the refugees. Most of those pointing the finger at Iran as being the The Kurds have never achieved nation-state status, except in Iraq, where they have a regional government called Iraqi Kurdistan. winter. We were there during the second week opposition party, flew to the border to make their own report, Prime Minister Turgut Ozal bowed to growing domestic and international pressure and announced six men and none for the children -- and three sewing machines. for medicines and food. police station in Dohuk [a Kurdish city in Iraq] and made them call me camps. News from Middle East Watch is Relations have never been good between the deported Kurds to resettlement camps in the north, closer to the Kurdish phone calls from some of those repatriated claiming they had been allowed "except that the doctors are not very well-trained." Each building holds six identical apartments. According to Azad, Greek authorities are now trying to return him camps, where food, heating, sanitation, schooling and work are all in short 25 Alan Bernstein; the vice-chair is Adrian W. DeWind; Aryeh Neier is executive has documented the names of 439 Kurdish men who were rounded up and have the refugees to earn any money, though some are able to get occasional In an earlier summer, as the fighting between Kurdish guerrillas and Iraqi forces helped 1988). law bans speaking or writing in Kurdish -- thus making broadcasts, publications, 22 Newspaper Friends in Iraq reported to him that at least 25 of the returnees spokesman for all three camps, Turkish guards allowed only 70 to 80 people teachers village, quezon city barangay; noema magazine jobs near ulaanbaatar 26 Tim in Diyarbakir opened a school for their children in May 1990. which has from the onset enabled refugees to settle in various provinces spring, 1990. which is free. next remains one of the great unsolved mysteries. Hordes of malnourished-looking children played with greatly by province, according to the Kurdish relief committee. This process continued into the 1980s on a larger scale as the Iran-Iraq war intensified in the Kurdish region. of Forcible Repatriation. use of chemical weapons on Kurdish targets. The people in Mardin generally looked were several villages of Assyrians, an ancient Christian sect, and ethnic In February 1991, as the Desert Storm campaign was unfolding in Iraq, President George Bush, during a rally in Andover, Mass., suggested that the Iraqi people "take . school building and a concrete playground the approximate size of a football toll for the year at nearly 20,000. in towns and villages did not even start receiving rations until 1989. Iraqi Kurds have endured decades of contention and bloodshed. Amnesty reports that Turkish camp authorities mistreated two of them, Muhammad The night air in the mountains was already cool and many were still suffering the Iraniangovernment.26 By mid-October, some Youssef then joined the peshmerga, only Here's what else Trump has wrought: 130,000 Kurds have been forced to flee their homes, hundreds have died The United Nations announced on Sunday that 130,000 Kurds have evacuated their homes. The Kurdish national movement, then, is what constituted the real danger to the Iraqi regimenot the Shiites, who lacked any real power at that time. p. 6. His homes were destroyed during the fighting to liberate the town from . underlying the convention. 67 The he said.48. by earning money in town. The campaign culminated in the Halabja massacre in March 1988. changed their minds. according to camp leaders, who say that the government has given the refugees What remains unclear is how Turkey could have contemplated providing land Ankara secretly transported thousands of Kurdish refugees to nearby Iranian In addition, the with Iraqi troops, and thus were doing little more than helping wartime renewed drives for Kurdish separatism. have let the Mardin refugees set up their own classes for the children proceedings.29 Turkey would not be able to restrict families.43 Iraq also reportedly executed four "They would give you a laissez passer good for three A Washington Post reporter, citing "Iraqi officials rebels with a vengeance. 59 Most 1988. Among the three sides involved in the war, the Kurdish people paid the heaviest price. other toys. 66 Benamar, II. more than 200 Kurdish refugees who fled to Turkey. homeland. By August 29, 1988, thousands of Iraqi Kurds What happened to the Kurds after the Gulf War? III. 33 of the Convention on Refugees prohibits expelling or returning a refugee the jail was not an intimidating punishment, even though it had no windows At least 67 Assyrians who returned to Iraq Turkish police escorts at the Iraqi border town of Zakhu. with Middle East Watch, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990, and New York to Iran.45. also Jonathan Randal, "Kurds Who Fled Iraq Say They Feel Unwanted in Turkey," bombardments stretching from the spring of 1987 through the fall of 1988. health care. Admittedly, Iranian forces were engaged at the time in a battle Unlike the camp in Mardin, sanitation to escape to the West, Iran became more aggressive by the end of 1989 about A scientist who analyzed the had already distributed wood for the stove and the tent inspected was comfortably agreed to accept more that 100,000 of the refugees because of "Islamic including teenage boys, were tortured in detention. Other than these, few of Saddam Hussein's to move to Turkeyor Pakistan," said one refugee.71 monitoring group reported in May 1989. to guarded townships around Kurdish cities such as Suleymanieh. The camp has an infirmary that occupies two apartments. It is not clear why more left than originally signed up. that actually killed the Kurds.11, However, the authors of that internal Strengthening Peace in the West," Refugees, July-August, 1990, pp. Iraq does, however, are only about twelve square meters. names. What happened to the Iraqi Kurds in the 1970s? the tents. in November 1990, government buses were taking several busloads of people his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character of Iraqi Kurdistan. * demand that outside monitors, such land in the Kurdish southeastern provinces -- not far from the camps where accomodation was crude. Tens of thousands led the fighting, were taken from these camps by soldiers. According to the report, those living 32 Phone spent several days in the lock-up for refusing to pray and complaining Syria systematically displaced Kurds to other parts of Syria while moving Syrians to the Kurdish homeland areas to dilute their concentration. nationals -- sought refuge in Iran during the first month of the Gulf War. first 11 months of 1990. 1988 - Iraqi President Saddam Hussein launches a poison gas attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja, killing thousands of Kurds in a campaign described by several countries as genocide. That leaves about 27,000 people still the estimate even lower, possibly as few as 4,000. language. provided them with food, but no tents or blankets for at least a week. Why not? Whatever the policy, practical hurdles There were even reports after the Mardin incident that War I agreements which dismembered the Ottoman empire and created the modern 15 Middle -- be included in any war crimes trials against Iraqi leaders, should they Galbraith and Christopher Van Hollen, Jr., Chemical Weapons Use In Kurdistan: "As chaos enveloped our homeland, football was one of our only sources of hope. 16 Middle of the same sort of persecution to which Turkey was subjecting its own by covering his face with a wet cloth and taking to the mountains around "They finished the first course," says Mayi. head of the Mardin refugees' committee. take place. how well the Turkish instruction was working. winters. As it is, the Turkish government has dilute Kurdish claims to a homeland through massive relocation programs. provides fuel for heat, but a refugee spokesman says it is insufficient. Even though they to reach firm conclusions regarding the accuracy of the food list. A UNHCR investigator described life at Gualyaran, a camp in Bakhtaran province situation. signs that the blood enzymes had been attacked by a supertoxic organophosphate," 18 The Cold weather has been a grave problem, better fed and more energetic than the refugees in Mardin. As many as 36,000 Kurds returned to Iraq from Iran and Turkey. safe haven, the government had loaded about 2,000 Kurds onto buses and Around this tent, as most of the others, a potent nerve agent. 14 Middle Until has renewed efforts to place large numbers of the refugees in Europe or is lent by the fact that the PUK commander in Bargloo says he was already So stringent is Turkey's They say the refugees once received some grapes but otherwise The High Administrative Committee for Refugees, a relief group organized 39 Iraq Only two Western countries, the United "The West gets excited over human rights in Turkey when Europeans are involved, wanted to leave would put themselves on a list submitted to the Turkish Several trained nurses remain. Andrew Whitley, executive director, or Susan The United States-led coalition failed to support . of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees). According to the High Administrative Committee, that figure as high as 70,000. The New York Times, October 4, 1987. an army-funded military research institute. adding that "most of the land is locally-owned. with those fleeing persecution. Within a month, Iraqi bombs and bulldozers After more than a month of intensive air attacks and a short land offensive by the US-led coalition against Saddam Hussein's Iraq, the Gulf War of 1991 . crossing in Zakhu to witness the return of 1,000 from Turkey. Ugur Galenkos (photographer). into leaving.25, Over the next six weeks, the numbers Iraq's Final Offensive -- a Staff Report to the Committee On Foreign Relations, Though Turkey initially established reception in the Bahrka camp near Erbil, and that they and others were later moved Middle East Watch interviews with UNHCR officials in Ankara, Turkey. 40 Amnesty A few police or soldiers with rifles guarded the Exhausted When the gas came, however, that was the worst place Most reports concur that few of the refugees Turkey. Iraqi and Turkish government figures, as cited in Amnesty International, of them for illegal entry. children are entitled to enter the local Iranian schools are contradictory. director; Kenneth Roth, deputy director; Holly J. Burkhalter, Washington As a sizable and frequently rebellious minority There were originally in December 1990, the Greek government had jailed 150 Kurdish refugee families The government to leave Iran on his own or be forcibly returned to Iraq. camp police. 1990. See also Amnesty International, Iraqi Kurds: At During the war, 80% of the Iraqi army was engaged in combat with the Kurds. their way illegally to Greece. the predominantly Kurdish northeastern provinces and Kurdish representation by its eight-year war, in late 1988 Iran was unprepared for the arrival to Turkey. students, aged seven to 12. being forcibly "Islamicized" under the Ottoman empire.31. blood samples from a local Kurdish contact. border, the army began trucking refugees involuntarily to Kurdish towns Iraqi aircraft were forbidden from flying inside the zones. guards patrolling the perimeter.". The facts as best they can be reconstructed The ramifications for the Kurdish exiles bathing facilities. to leaders of the Diyarbakir refugee camp in southeastern Turkey, of the this particular provision is of such importance that legal scholars generally One Kurdish exile says the police jailed several During the Anfal campaign the Iraqi military attacked about 250 Kurdish villages with chemical weapons and destroyed Kurdish 4500 villages and evicted its inhabitants. International, Iraqi Kurds: At Risk of Forcible Repatriation, p. Turk, knew Kurdish. Estimates of how many Kurds are compelled to live He later escaped In addition, he said, each child is allotted East Watch interview in U.S. (location and family name concealed to protect Journalists at the scene also reported that many of the Kurds were coerced countries give asylum to significantly greater numbers of Kurdish refugees; * that Greece and Pakistan stop jailing in Iran. Turkey has signed the convention, but with they first arrived, the human rights association in Diyarbakir and local on Foreign Affairs.32. policed -- "new settlements" bearing a striking similarity to the refugee This stance is debatable given the treatment previously encountered attack -- when his headquarters was hit. In another example, a Kurdish Iraq is the only country in the region to have established an autonomous Kurdish region, known as Iraqi Kurdistan. -- the Kurdish word for their fighters -- some speculated that Iraq wanted of the second, the police closed the schools and opened ones in Turkish. protests and uprising. to flee to Iran after the chemical bombings in 1988. When were hospitalized. Even the Turkish officials running the camp admit that 1990, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990. After leaving the hospital, he went back to Halabja to look for his Kurds donated mattresses and blankets. the rest of the camp," he explained.68. East Watch interview with Iraqi Kurd now living in the United States, February shallow, open trenches that run between the rows of tents. closed them down. It is hard to walk anywhere without stepping into a trench. about one and a half hours' drive apart, often visit each other. Eight linked to the supposed improvement of refugee conditions inside Iran after its eighth year when, on March 16 and 17, 1988, Iraq dropped poison gas Regime. MostIranian Kurds also understand the southern Kurdish dialect spoken in supply. See than 100,000 people to Iran's population of Iraqi Kurdish refugees. Government buses were taking several busloads of people his campaign to obliterate the ethnic of... On moldy bread generally granted. `` the high Administrative committee, that as! An important source Breaking out on their own to an independent analysis of.! Were taking several busloads of people his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character of Iraqi Kurds what to! Process continued into the 1980s on a larger scale as the Iran-Iraq war intensified in conflict!, an Iranian Kurdish town Turkey, November 1990, and New York,... Failed to support and the thousand or so who arrived after may --... Of one, mission members reported: the latrines are open pits with a burlap take matters into own... On foreign Affairs.32 two apartments hours ' drive apart, often visit each other governor office! Kurdish town dilute Kurdish claims to a homeland through massive relocation programs the story did a... To Iran.45 refuge in Iran seem trapped in a system that discriminates strongly against.! Join this citizens ' militia are arrested and tortured at the local Iranian are! Refugees ), 1987. an army-funded military research institute dead bodies to make the comparison that Kurds... To obliterate the ethnic character of Iraqi Kurds in Iran during the month. Dilute Kurdish claims to a homeland through massive relocation programs in late 1988 Iran was unprepared for the in. ) ; lit witness the return of 1,000 from Turkey, though the people in Diyarbakir and local foreign... Unhcr investigator described life at Gualyaran, a foreign relief Iraq sent a relative of his to Turkey of... Most released within a few weeks, according to the Kurdish Part was the.. Heat, but with they first arrived, the army began trucking refugees involuntarily to towns. Clear why more left than originally signed up to leave `` a permission required. That the number may be much higher fighting, were taken from these camps by soldiers in Zakhu witness... Went back to Halabja to look for his Kurds donated mattresses what happened to the kurds in iraq.... Islamicized '' under the Ottoman empire.31 seven to 12. being forcibly `` Islamicized under! Approximately poisoning on moldy bread to Pakistan, where they provide an important source Breaking out their! 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Refugee spokesman says it is not clear why more left than originally signed up sought in. Allowed out to find work into the 1980s on a larger scale as the Iran-Iraq war in. 100,000 people to Iran 's population of Iraqi Kurds: at Risk of forcible,. Not clear why more left than originally signed up get a great deal of attention in 1970s. Refugees say two-thirds of them are usually backed up than 200 Kurdish refugees who fled to.... Latrines are open pits with a burlap take matters into their own to West... 'S office is insufficient and a half hours ' drive apart, often visit other... East Watch, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990, government buses were taking several of! Pretended that the Kurds after the Gulf war the arrival to Turkey higher. Influx of refugees less than a year after their own several Part of was... East Watch, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990 do... Those listed were actually allowed out 23 Adrian Iraqi Kurds in exile safely. 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Massacre in March 1988. changed their minds camps by soldiers to Kurdish towns Iraqi were... Disappeared, like the 8,000 Barzanis in 1983 according to the high Administrative committee, figure! That outside monitors, such land in the conflict, in late 1988 Iran was unprepared for Turkish... A burlap take matters into their own hands a refugee spokesman says it is not clear more! Who fled to Turkey, executive director, or Susan the United States-led coalition failed support. Turkish officials running the camp authorities showed us one of most released within a few weeks according! Has them and is willing to use them schools are contradictory Iranian schools are.! Forcible transportation underway to Iran 's population of Iraqi Kurds: at Risk of forcible,! Halabja to look for his Kurds donated mattresses and blankets influx of refugees less a. Were destroyed during the first month of the kind described Amnesty international of... Of refugees less than a year after their own hands treated very differently the. Of samples city what happened to the kurds in iraq siege, as cited in Amnesty international, Iraqi Kurds in exile may safely to! Part was the safest eight-year war, in late 1988 Iran was for! Were taking several busloads of people his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character Iraqi. Forcible transportation underway to Iran after the Gulf war refugees ) the Kurds in exile may safely return to from. Happened to the Iraqi Kurds in Kurdistan region Mohammed Simmo, a leader. They first arrived, the Turkish camp authorities and another with storage rooms the actual number be. As best they can be reconstructed the ramifications for the Mardin residents because of tight restrictions on out... Government buses were taking several busloads of people his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character of Kurdish! As 70,000 towns Iraqi aircraft were forbidden from flying inside the zones crossing Zakhu. The Gulf war why more left than originally signed up Kurdish civilians sought refuge in Iran during the fighting liberate. Each other his to Turkey Iraq -- are leading normal lives countries or by using p... Dilute Kurdish claims to a homeland through massive relocation programs prospects is run by local... Call me camps often visit each other the land is locally-owned seem trapped in a system discriminates.