Analysis How Turkey's PKK amnesty law entwines Kurds' hopes with Erdogan's ambitions The first legislation to emerge from direct negotiations with Abdullah Ocalan offers a path to ending Turkey's war with the PKK while potentially giving President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the votes he needs to remain in power for a third term. By Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture
Iraqi Kurdish president’s meeting with Syria’s Sharaa signals shift in SDF dynamics KRG President Nechirvan Barzani’s meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa underscored the Kurdistan Region’s growing role in Syria’s Kurdish politics. Iraq
Zaidi to meet Erdogan as Turkey-Iraq ties take off, Kurds feel sidelined The Iraqi prime minister's visits to Ankara and Riyadh underscore Baghdad's push to deepen regional ties as Turkey seeks closer cooperation on energy and security. Turkey
Interview PJAK leader mocks Iran’s claim Turkey spiked US Kurdish-backed regime-change plan The PJAK co-leader says he does not believe Washington or Israel would abandon a strategic objective as significant as toppling Iran's government because of Turkish objections. Siamand Moeini PJAK Executive Council Member
Analysis Why Iran's Kurdish front is becoming a growing wartime concern By A correspondent in Tehran In Tehran, reporting on politics
57 nations hit for failure to repatriate women, children from Syrian camps UN human rights experts are pressing Great Britain, France, Iran, Russia, Turkey, the United States and 51 other countries to repatriate nearly 10,000 of their citizens associated with the Islamic State. Syria
Intel: US unsatisfied with Turkey's response to Syria rights abuses The US government continues to raise reports of human rights abuses in Syria with Turkey, according to a new watchdog report. Originals
Syrian government, SDF trade accusations of violations of Russian-mediated cease-fire No sooner had an agreement been reached between the Syrian regime and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces to lift the mutual sieges imposed in northeast Syria that accusations were traded about violations of the Russian-sponsored deal. Syria
Syrian Kurds hoping for lifeline from Biden administration Damascus, Ankara and Moscow turn up the heat on US-backed group; UN Syria envoy says, "We can’t continue like this." Syria
Will Turkish defense minister’s Iraq visit yield concrete results? Although Turkey's defense minister seems to be satisfied with the outcome of his recent visit to Baghdad and Erbil, there are several impediments to Turkey's security demands. Iraq
Syria’s Kurdish-led administration calls on Biden for political recognition SDF commander Mazlum Kobane told Al-Monitor last month he hopes the Biden administration will double the US troop presence in northeast Syria. Syria
Arabs in Syrian Kurdish-controlled region on edge following assassinations Al-Monitor conducted a rare reporting trip to Syria’s eastern Deir ez-Zor region to discuss the situation with the chief of the part of the Arab-majority governorate under Kurdish-led SDF control in the oil-rich and insurgent-prone area. Syria
Europe human rights court calls on Turkey to release Demirtas Europe’s top human rights court ruled Wednesday for the "immediate release" of Selahattin Demirtas, former co-chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), who has been imprisoned for more than four years in Turkey on terror-related charges. Turkey
KRG asks US forces to deploy along Kurdish-controlled part of Iraqi-Syrian border In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani’s deputy chief of staff outlined why the Kurdish region's government wants US forces stationed in and around the Fish Khabur border crossing. Iraq
One reported dead in fight between Kurdish groups in Iraq A peshmerga soldier in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq reportedly died during a fight with the PKK on Sunday amid tensions between the two groups as well as with Turkey. Iraq
Dozens killed, injured in Iraq’s Kurdistan protests as some consider leaving Protests in the southeastern part of the Kurdistan Region over unpaid public sector salaries amid an ongoing budget dispute with Baghdad have led to several deaths. Iraq
Outgoing Syria envoy reflects on Turkey, the Kurds and what everyone got wrong In a long-ranging interview with Al-Monitor, James Jeffrey looks back on his efforts to incorporate fragments of Obama-era initiatives into a cohesive Middle East policy. Syria
