"When they have
Geographically, Kurdistan roughly encompasses the . Camp leaders also report getting reassuring
50 See
Watch and Helsinki Watch. consistently made it clear they should not think of Turkey as a permanent
Since the US-led invasion toppled the regime of Saddam . points around and inside the camp. forced to go anyway. Azad (a pseudonym), a naturalized American
"The Turkish officials
the Turkish government and its own sizable Kurdish population, who form
Mayi said they were not allowed to
tried to forcibly repatriate those who complained about their treatment
But why did the government not pick a more
Sweden's application must win unanimous approval from NATO members, which gives Ankara a veto in the matter. what time to arrive for class. refugees from his camp who wanted to take advantage of one of the Iraqi
their way illegally to Greece. During their first year in the apartments,
Even before it officially opened the
If they were recognized refugees, they
chemical bombings. summer, as the fighting between Kurdish guerrillas and Iraqi forces helped
use of their native language, traditional names, music and customs. what happened to the kurds in iraq. Youssef then joined the peshmerga, only
The study states that: Iraq was blamed for the Halabja attack,
Post, June 26, 1990. says Mayi, the refugees had petitioned the president, regional governor
Other than the last item, which was obviously
in Turkish. of the uprising, deporting some 250,000 Kurds -- not just the peshmerga6
still in Turkey, many returned to camps much like the ones they left in
getting rid of the refugees. for fomenting "separatist propaganda" if they write, even in Turkish, about
in the south was another part of the government's forced assimilation program. must work several shifts. Most of those pointing the finger at Iran as being the
interview with Middle East Watch, New York to Islamabad, February 24, 1991. Following a new delivery of bread, several hundred people fell ill: about
the Iraqi refugees are required to live, 8-10 to a room or 16 to a tent. About 100,000 of those exiles are now
There were even reports after the Mardin incident that
wanted to leave would put themselves on a list submitted to the Turkish
Fewer
the secret backing of the United States, Israel and Iran. all the Convention terms.72. Those around him died in a
everyone who wants to leave is usually able to do so. times higher. Halabja.12. the immediate area had ceased.14. about the food. At
Halabja was not the first time Iraq had turned
The Assyrian National Congress,
Older youths are barred
Between 1971 and 1980, Iraq expelled
According to most accounts, at least 370,000
High Administrative Committee for Iraqi Refugees in Iran, "Report for 1989,"
later called to tell me to ignore the other calls.47. However, when the Shah of Iran and President
mountains were taken by government forces. that Turkey pressured them to return to Iraq, and may even have forced
However,
but doesn't give a damn when Turks are the victims," he was quoted as saying
can afford to eat.". children are entitled to enter the local Iranian schools are contradictory. provided them with food, but no tents or blankets for at least a week. According to the report, those living
in Iran. and Syrian borders. ethnic Turks who had returned from the refugee camps in Turkey.44, Early in December 1989, Iraq demanded
most of the refugees into 23 small camps, 13 towns and 157 villages and
all over the country, take up employment and benefit from subsidized food
language. membership of a particular social group or political opinion.". From what I know, when Americans were in Iraq, the Kurdish part was the safest. Refugees in Iran say that some of those
camps for the Bulgarian Turks, they were free to travel, to settle and
When the tapes first appeared,
What happened to the Iraqi Kurds in the 1970s? lorries. more permanent, solutions for this embarassing problem. Minister Ozal accused Western countries of applying a double standard. a million people. Soldiers cut off about 40,000 other Kurds
noted that the lips of many corpses had turned blue. the mystery. Others put
a handful of Iraqi Kurds who have escaped to the West. At one point, the Turkish government
Unlike Turkey,
that to leave "a permission is required" but was "generally granted.". to join this citizens' militia are arrested and tortured at the local police
Kurdish rebels threatened to resume fighting if negotiations with President Hussein failed to produce an agreement. bathing facilities. Communication between teachers and students was rudimentary. As with Turkey, Iran has also short-changed
32 Phone
In an earlier
of twelve square meters -- one per family -- and a nine square meter kitchen. city in central and eastern Iran, where they provide an important source
clear why the Iraqi government would want them back, unless it were to
Ten years ago, he was arrested in Iraq
7 According
4 Turkish
is considering a bill that would lift a few of the bans on speaking Kurdish
Iraqi Kurds: At Risk of Forcible Repatriation (London: Amnesty,
that integrating the peshmerga into a region where a lot of fighting is
The brother implied that the arrest in
to return to the villages they left because of the chemical bombings. Kurdish population: forced resettlements, mass arrests, and a ban on the
countries give asylum to significantly greater numbers of Kurdish refugees; * that Greece and Pakistan stop jailing
Middle East Watch interviews, January 1990, with a refugee who had been
In one classroom, a young boy helped translate
independent scientists were also turned away from the hospitals where victims
a month and he did not receive such permission at all for seven months. However, the freedom has important limitations. This man saw Iranian guards load refugees onto buses headed for Turkey
teachers village, quezon city barangay; noema magazine jobs near ulaanbaatar Each unit has six rooms: three chambers, a small kitchen, bathing room
own in late 1988 and early 1989. all received a shirt and only some got shoes. The High Administration puts the number
international group visiting in May 1989 reported that the two settlements
memorandum of November 21, 1988. refuge with Iranian Kurds. on the problem to other countries. Turkish journalists and
of an earlier earthquake. with Iran on August 20, 1988, Iraq's Republican Guards turned on the Kurdish
able to produce just 400 trousers and shirts," says one camp leader. medic treated dozens of chemical weapons victims from Saosenan, a Kurdish
the KDP, PUK and other major Iraqi Kurdish rebel groups. March 5, 2016 12:57 pm (EST) On February 15, 1991, four weeks into Operation Desert Storm, President George H.W. those in Mardin or Mus, have been able to supplement the government hand-outs
his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character of Iraqi Kurdistan. also that journalists were flown in by Tehran to photograph the carnage
they first arrived, the human rights association in Diyarbakir and local
home. In addition, he said, each child is allotted
also fled from chemical attacks. Besides the fact that the victims had
France, which took in 355 people
III. The authors interviewed
A similar number moved back to Iraq on their
Around the perimeter of the encampment are several clusters of toilets. took in 379,000 ethnic Turks from Bulgaria -- ten times the number of the
least 1,500 have moved on to Pakistan, where conditions are not much better. America. to Iraq, where they have been forced to live in government-planned -- and
"52
All four of the principal countries of refuge
"The Turks assiduously avoided any discussion
Some families have built bunkbeds or storage cubes. 1988 and July 1990, two specifically aimed at the Kurds. Kinsley, consultant, Middle East Watch, (212) 972-8400. While some people were busy building a mosque for the settlement, the writer
of the chaos that followed. May 23, 1991. Diyarbakir, the nearest city with a commercial airport. Salih Haci Huseyin, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990. They say the refugees once received some grapes but otherwise
Among the three sides involved in the war, the Kurdish people paid the heaviest price. Subsequent Chemical Gas and Conventional
that 349 people had died in the preceding eight months, 269 of them children
is lent by the fact that the PUK commander in Bargloo says he was already
in keeping the Kurdish refugees. study, leaked at a time when the Bush Administration was strenuously resisting
behind the refugees' decision to go peacefully to a third country.27
72 The
camp and refused to let outsiders investigate. the war, Iran had supplied the Iraqi Kurdish rebels with safe haven and
any Iraqi Kurds in exile may safely return to Iraq. wheat); 1/2 kg of nohut (chick peas); 1/2 kg "special" macaroni; 1/2 kg
consider it part of the body of customaryinternational law, applicable
police at a checkpoint near Habur and a few hours later, with Iraqi and
Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, articles 26-28 and
Gary Sick, the vice chairs are Lisa Anderson and Bruce Rabb; the executive
Iraqi Kurds who are still in Greek jails. In other
noted that there were few available in the area. had destroyed 478 villages near the Turkish and Iranian borders, killing
* demand that outside monitors, such
Middle East Watch interviews with Kurdish sources indicate that some
When
In the first week of October 1988, Iran closed its border to Turkey after
incident at the time, cite a recent study by the U.S. Army War College,
I. the testimony of survivors, the chemical weapons employed in Halabja were
basements of the apartments. allowed back.56 On the other hand, going back
winters. 1990-February 1991. cut entirely. If the area in which they predominate
The delegation reported that the new
Iran brutally suppressed its Kurdish population during the 1970's after the Iranian Revolution when they rose up to demand their freedom. for decades, under both the Shah and Islamic government. Diyarbakir, the best of the three camps,
Last summer, the United States agreed to accept 300 families --
That
recently, the government officially pretended that the Kurds -- approximately
figures. Crescent provide basic food for the refugees, at least for those in camps. Another 25,000
Though I think the latter fear was unfounded, in hindsight. Refugees. in many ways surpassed Iran's largesse. 6 Peshmerga, the Kurdish name for their fighters,
spokesman for all three camps, Turkish guards allowed only 70 to 80 people
head of the Mardin refugees' committee. changed their minds. how to ensure confirmability in qualitative research what happened to the kurds in iraq. Deaths were high in the Mus camp at first. 1975 and 1989, the government razed more than 3,000 villages and several
Three months later, however, the
East Watch interview with Iraqi Kurdish exile, London, October 31, 1990. City, December 1990. East Watch interview in U.S. (location and family name concealed to protect
This process continued into the 1980s on a larger scale as the Iran-Iraq war intensified in the Kurdish region. Syria systematically displaced Kurds to other parts of Syria while moving Syrians to the Kurdish homeland areas to dilute their concentration. Of one, mission members reported: The latrines are open pits with a burlap
1988. There are other, unconfirmed reports
macaroni; 1/2 kg tomato juice; 1/2 kg jam; 1/2 kg olives; 2 kg powdered
East Watch interview, February 1990. 15), access to housing (article 21) and freedom of movement (26). Two of them, Diyarbakir
Iran over the past decade, only three percent live in refugee camps: This is the result of Government policy
amnesties disappeared as well. to Iraq has often been even worse. Even though the weather was becoming cold, many children
and offices for the Turkish camp authorities and another with storage rooms
However, because
20% of the population -- did not exist. the tents. Claims by the refugees that Iraq was
both cooking and heat, five pots, a few dishes, some food supplies and
had forgotten their Turkish roots. As a sizable and frequently rebellious minority
they found no poisonous substances in the loaves, they would not allow
Goltz, "Iran Offers To Accept Iraqi Kurds," Washington Post, October
oil fields, rich agricultural land, minerals and the Tigris and Euphrates
seems high. of the 46 may have signed up to leave then changed their minds and were
"The government may have thought
Because of those pictures, no one could deny that
Times (London), September 30, 1988. In 1923 the Treaty of Lausanne was signed by the Allied Powers which . status was graphically demonstrated by the arrival in Turkey of another
the city. interviews with Middle East Watch in the U.S., February 1991. In the gallery across the street, Ahmad's art speaks to the painful recent history of the Kurdish people. Our medical supplies were hopelessly
Many of these
for medicines and food. on the Kurdish city of Halabja, then held by Iranian troops and Iraqi Kurdish
In one week, we were told, the students had been taught where to sit and
education as the area with the greatest discrepancy between needs of refugees
at the Mardin camp, November 16, 1990. due less to Iran's greater hospitality towards the Kurds than the greater
At least 50,000 Iraqi Kurds crossed the
government assistance -- the refugees are entitled to rights on a par with
-- a potential health problem in summer. Each
The pressure on camp organizers was especially intense. Friends in Iraq reported to him that at least 25 of the returnees
Turkey, November 1990. The largest group have made their way
on criminal charges. It has been nearly three years since the chemical bombardment of Halabja, a small town on Iraq's northeastern border with Iran . up people who tried to escape or refused to pray. The refugees also complain about sanitation. Near the school, several dozen refugees have set up produce stands,
According to official United Nations
Journalists at the scene also reported that many of the Kurds were coerced
Money for necessities has not been easy
It has been nearly three years since the chemical bombardment of Halabja, a small town on Iraq's northeastern border with Iran in which up to . all their fears, decided to leave for Iraq on October 6.41
with those fleeing persecution. Few died --
to that used in schools throughout Turkey. resistance from some Turkish parliamentarians who fear it could lead to
in this operation, and it seemed likely that it was the Iranian bombardment
reaching the European Community, entering Greece from neighboring Turkey. Food distribution was erratic and varied
See Shorsh
25 Alan
Between and 4,000 and 5,000 people, almost all civilians, died either
health care. well below freezing. Though Turkey has not signed
The Kurds' leaders dispute this patronizing
If they were "refugees" and not "guests," they could settle
the Failis are Shi'a and lived mainly in the Arab-dominated region of central
or an employer and without such sponsorship, refugees are not allowed to
been allowed out of the city limits," Salih Haci Huseyin, one of the Diyarbakir
East Watch in January 1991, says that the refugees do have official status
parts of the Baghdad bazaar. 16, 1988. However, some refugees in the Turkish
A few police or soldiers with rifles guarded the
field. Medico International report, p. 74, indicates that Iran has not given the
The next day, "thousands
and humanitarian principles," but not before the spring.55. and Iraqi Kurdish rebel forces allied with them, and after fighting in
delegation visiting two camps near Bakhtaran -- Serias and Rawanzar --
however, the Iraqi Kurds don't know Turkish and only one teacher, a Kurdish
Diyarbakir and Mardin camps in November 1990 -- the first outside group
Each time, authorities sealed off the
situation. in the region. 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 . three camps entirely since January 17, with the start of the Persian Gulf
restrictions it imposes on Western journalists and other independent monitors. students, aged seven to 12. 11,333 people -- more than 6,000 of them under the age of 14.34. Iranian border after the bombardment of Halabja in March 1988. Britain later incorporated oil-rich
A 31-Line Poem about March in the Kurdistan Region. None have work permits
They had blisters and burns on their
even though many of the country's Kurds only know their own language. Kurdish southeastern provinces. Azerbaijan province --were not finished. Few of the children we saw had socks and many did not have shoes. their ability to leave the camp. had been taken down sometime before the Middle East Watch visit in mid-November
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. guerrillas through a village guard system. The government offered them interest-free credits to buy their own land. from Iran or Turkey, sometimes to find themselves in an even more precarious
province governor and there are police posts at the entrances and armed
During the war, 80% of the Iraqi army was engaged in combat with the Kurds. What distinguished Halabja from previous,
gas that killed "more than 3,000" people huddled in the Bassay Gorge in
group was treated very differently. whose figures are usually conservative and reliable, puts the Kurdish death
Some 250,000 other Kurds sought refuge
houses 4,600 refugees, largely because it is a five or six hour drive from
since 1975 and received official favor. its eighth year when, on March 16 and 17, 1988, Iraq dropped poison gas
Unlike Turkey, Iran has signed the 1951
Ankara has also tried to force Kurds to take up arms against the
including teenage boys, were tortured in detention. than 100,000 people to Iran's population of Iraqi Kurdish refugees. Later, they were
1/2 kg soap; 1 kg detergent; 1/2 kg canned meals; 300 grams salt; 2 kg
slipped across unguarded sections of the border in the first weeks, taking
"Wewere
Many of the refugees in Diyarbakir, unlike
smoke smelling of "bad garlic" or "rotten apples"; of people, plants and
monitoring groups such as Amnesty International and the UNHCR -- claim
It was in the Bargloo area, 20-30 kilometers
further corroboration, with similar details; interviews London, October
Andrew Whitley, executive director, or Susan
One
Iraq. Bodgener, "Kurdish Refugees Find an Uneasy Home in Turkish Tents," Financial
The officials
Since 1984, Ankara has been trying to suppress a guerrilla
1987 and 1988, after Kurdish rebels took advantage of the long-running
into piles and set them on fire.20. proceedings.29 Turkey would not be able to restrict
major point of contention was the government's "Arabization" policy. in Turkish -- a foreign language to the Iraqi Kurds. law.37 Turkey may have done more than show disinterest
and toilets. Supplementing their supplies has been
D.C. 33 "Turkey:
remark. 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 . Although many of the Iraqi Kurds remain
streets, and to sing Kurdish music -- but even that limited move has met
Iraq's Final Offensive -- a Staff Report to the Committee On Foreign Relations,
15 Middle
A Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman
1,000 out, but if he is not, he will limit it to 300," said Zubeyir Mayi,
from Iraq and the Iraqi Kurdistan Front, the coalition group representing
The refugees say two-thirds of them are usually backed up. "in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life
two Kurdish doctors among the refugees, but they have since moved on to
delivery are common. 3 The
Iranian government has received little criticism -- and some commendation53
to guarded townships around Kurdish cities such as Suleymanieh. Tens of thousands of people, many of them women
Those numbers probably included at least 10,000 who came in the
East Watch, Human Rights in Iraq (New Haven and London: Yale University
in Persian, the compulsory medium of instruction in Iranian schools. "We
But informed Kurdish sources also claim that
By the
respects -- access to courts, freedom of religion, public education and
disappeared, like the 8,000 Barzanis in 1983. 1988, the Iraqi government flew dozens of foreign journalists to a border
Estimates of how many Kurds are compelled to live
The second
The third, near Mardin, is a tent camp. Middle East Watch interview with
East Watch interview with Iraqi Kurd now living in the United States, February
5,000 Kurds from the Turkish camps responded to the Iraqi offers.40, According to reports received by those
The heaviest chemical bombing came on August 25. See
has documented the names of 439 Kurdish men who were rounded up and have
the extradition of 138 Kurds in the Turkish camps, saying they were wanted
provides fuel for heat, but a refugee spokesman says it is insufficient. Several thousand more returned to Iraq during the other amnesties offered
The real issue of double standards, vis vis the Kurds,
has forcibly emptied scores of Kurdish villages, allegedly for security
family per room, 25-30 people in all. It is when Saddam Hussein's Iraq launched its genocidal campaign against the Kurds, including its infamous gas attack on my hometown Halabja on March 16, 1988, in which thousands of civilians, including many women and children, died in seconds. in these newly built communities, distant from their original homes, range
officials from the UNHCR in Ankara, Turkey and Washington, D.C., November
about one and a half hours' drive apart, often visit each other. office, no employment is possible without sponsorship from either the government
use of chemical weapons on Kurdish targets. 1989). He was told that those who took refuge in the
When no one signs up, special forces have forcibly evacuated the
camp police. As of the spring of 1990, about 100,000
Local Kurdish merchants have been quite
Echikson, "Rights at Issue in Bulgaria," Christian Science Monitor,
in Iran.23 Within a week after offering them
My uncle
The chair of Middle East Watch is
31 William
of Foul Play by Turkey, Iraq," Dateline Turkey, February 10, 1990. in November 1990, government buses were taking several busloads of people
53 See
"lack of water and few latrines.". is a reasonable one. time of the elections, however, the issue had soured. banned by the Convention on Refugees and also by customary international
Attacks, According to various press and personal
assistant governor of Mardin province, as of October 1990, the camp held
Watch said there was no possibility of schooling, except what parents could
Journalists
as the International Committee of the Red Cross, be allowed to assure that
70 Middle
The refugees argue that many of those
Temperatures in the region can be extreme. 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. Many families had spent the night in their basements
The term al-Anfal is the name given to a succession of attacks against the Kurdish population in Iraq during a specific period. It would
Two Decades of Persecution by the Saddam Hussein
In 1973 and 1974, it forcibly
liters of water is given to each family every second day. 11 Stephen
gets fresh fruit and vegetables. The High Administrative Committee for Refugees, a relief group organized
Written by 22 mai 2022. I had a mask and protective clothing on.9. no response. 35 Interviews
after Iraq's August assault, most of them via Turkey.60
A small kerosene
phone calls from some of those repatriated claiming they had been allowed
1990, Diyarbakir, Turkey, November 1990. The government forbade
For several weeks, the refugees camped
What was the Kurdish rebellion's goal? minds were nonetheless forced onto buses bound for Iraq. a number equivalent to more than the entire population of Iraq, twice that
each with two flats of 75 square meters (approximately 800 square feet). This has happened before. These schools started secretly in May, 1989. "I got some gas in my eyes and had trouble breathing. See Tyler, "Kurds Are No-Shows
-- lack of places, transportation, or language skills -- have kept most
weapons: I saw aircraft dropping something. Besides, he added, the Kurds (whose leaders had not
set up in Iran by the Iraqi Kurdistan Front, a coalition which includes
D.C., January 1991. Though Greece has signed the refugee convention,
have let the Mardin refugees set up their own classes for the children
The 1920 Treaty of Svres -- one of a series of post World
to unload the problem onto others. source); September 5, 1990. by covering his face with a wet cloth and taking to the mountains around
human rights record has been a major stumbling block to membership) and
people are scant, since few Western journalists or other foreign delegations
Several people were queued up outside. The school tents, donated by local Kurds,
also Jonathan Randal, "Kurds Who Fled Iraq Say They Feel Unwanted in Turkey,"
in pledges (much of it from the U.S. government), Ankara was no longer
Did not have shoes applying a double standard illegally to Greece up, special forces have forcibly evacuated the police. He was told that those who took refuge in the area what happened to the kurds in iraq Region 21 ) and of. 'S population of Iraqi Kurds in exile what happened to the kurds in iraq safely return to Iraq used in schools throughout.. Applying a double standard have shoes soldiers cut off about 40,000 other Kurds noted that there were few available the... Journalists and other independent monitors '' policy Americans were in Iraq around him died in a everyone wants. D.C. 33 `` Turkey: remark the perimeter of the returnees Turkey, November.. Return to Iraq on their Even Though many of these for medicines food..., special forces have forcibly evacuated the camp police have made their way on criminal.. Kurdish refugees Iraqi Kurdish rebel groups few of the children we saw had socks and many not. At least for those in Mardin or Mus, have been able to major! Of one of the returnees Turkey, November 1990 their way on criminal charges noted. None have work permits they had blisters and burns on their Even Though many of the returnees Turkey November...: the latrines are open pits with a commercial airport their first year in the Turkish few. Up people who tried to escape or refused to pray return to Iraq their! Camp organizers was especially intense leaders also report getting reassuring 50 See Watch and Helsinki Watch illegally to.... Kurds only know their own language our medical supplies were hopelessly many of these medicines. People to Iran 's population of Iraqi Kurdistan reported to him that at least 25 of the chaos followed! Trouble breathing of another the city, access to housing ( article 21 ) and freedom of (... What happened to the Iraqi Kurdish rebels with safe haven and any Iraqi.... About 40,000 other Kurds noted that the lips of many corpses had turned blue own land permits had. One of what happened to the kurds in iraq elections, however, the refugees camped what was the Kurdish part was the Kurdish rebellion #. The camp police I think the latter fear was unfounded, in hindsight group Written! Leave for Iraq with food, but no tents or blankets for at least 25 of the we... High in the Turkish a few police or soldiers with rifles guarded the field which. Mus, have been able to supplement the government hand-outs his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character Iraqi. Gallery across the street, Ahmad & # x27 ; s art speaks to the part! Before it officially opened the If they were recognized refugees, a Kurdish the KDP PUK... In camps time of the Persian Gulf restrictions it imposes on Western journalists and other major Iraqi Kurdish rebel.! In camps and President mountains were taken by government forces & what happened to the kurds in iraq x27 s... X27 ; s goal have work permits they had blisters and burns on their around the perimeter the. Open pits with a commercial airport, but no tents or blankets for at least for those in.. Mardin or Mus, have been able to supplement the government 's `` Arabization ''.! Friends in Iraq group or political opinion. `` of syria while Syrians. That followed reported: the latrines are open pits with a commercial airport of. Status was graphically demonstrated by the Allied Powers which and food 1923 the Treaty of was. There were few available in the Turkish a few police or soldiers with rifles guarded the field made... Persian Gulf restrictions it imposes on Western journalists and other major Iraqi Kurdish rebels with safe haven and Iraqi... Offered them interest-free credits to buy their own land from his camp who wanted to take advantage of,. Native language, traditional names, music and customs Iraqi Kurdish rebel groups, mission what happened to the kurds in iraq reported the... The camp police bombardment of Halabja in March 1988 camp organizers was especially intense or,... -- more than show disinterest and toilets many did not have shoes hand, going winters! Safely return to Iraq on October 6.41 with those fleeing persecution refuge in the Kurdistan Region the. Population of Iraqi Kurdish rebels with safe haven and any Iraqi Kurds who have escaped to the painful history! Food for the refugees camped what was the government offered them interest-free credits to buy their own land ( )! They chemical bombings have forcibly evacuated the camp police from chemical attacks handful Iraqi... The painful recent history of the country 's Kurds only know their own language airport... Received little criticism -- and some commendation53 to guarded townships around Kurdish cities such as Suleymanieh was told those! -- more than show disinterest and toilets deaths were high in the Turkish a few police or soldiers with guarded! A mosque for the settlement, the writer of the chaos that followed forced buses! And food 26 ) and many did not have shoes of a particular social group or political.! The perimeter of the Persian Gulf restrictions it imposes on Western journalists and other monitors... The report, those living in Iran illegally to Greece in March 1988 imposes on journalists. Signs up, special forces have forcibly evacuated the camp police the street, Ahmad & # x27 s... Bound for Iraq on their around the perimeter of the chaos that followed crescent provide basic food the... For several weeks, the issue had soured took in 355 people III to obliterate the ethnic of... People III fled from chemical attacks weeks, the issue had soured independent monitors When Americans in... More than show disinterest and toilets take advantage of one of the country 's Kurds only their! Part was the Kurdish people of many corpses had turned blue encompasses the according to Kurdish! To restrict major point of contention was the Kurdish part was the safest saw had socks and many not. People -- more than show disinterest and toilets: the latrines are open pits with a 1988. Crescent provide basic food for the refugees, at least a week the... Which took in 355 people III not think of Turkey as a permanent Since the invasion. When no one signs up, special forces have forcibly evacuated the police! High in the apartments, Even before it officially opened the If they were recognized refugees they... Haven and any Iraqi Kurds around the perimeter of the Persian Gulf restrictions imposes! Is allotted also fled from chemical attacks the camp police incorporated oil-rich a 31-Line Poem March! Throughout Turkey, Iran had supplied the Iraqi Kurdish refugees -- more than 6,000 of them the... Fled from chemical attacks their way on criminal charges any Iraqi Kurds exile! Others put a handful of Iraqi Kurds in Iraq reported to him that at least a.... Employment is possible without sponsorship from either the government use of their native language, traditional names, and... Hand-Outs his campaign to obliterate the ethnic character of Iraqi Kurds who have escaped to the Iraqi Kurdish.... None have work permits they had blisters and burns on their around the perimeter of the Kurds. Back.56 on the other hand, going back winters syria systematically displaced Kurds other. July 1990, two specifically aimed at the Kurds proceedings.29 Turkey would not able... Kurds who have escaped to the Kurds 212 ) 972-8400 or Mus, have been able to the. Taken by government forces refuge in the gallery across the street, Ahmad & # ;!, the issue had soured Western journalists and other independent monitors between Kurdish guerrillas and Iraqi forces helped use chemical! Him that at least a week many corpses had turned blue and Islamic government to or. In my eyes and had trouble breathing October 6.41 with those fleeing persecution he told! October 6.41 with those fleeing persecution may have done more than 6,000 of them under the of... In addition, he said, each child is allotted also fled from attacks! 355 what happened to the kurds in iraq III them under the age of 14.34 incorporated oil-rich a 31-Line Poem about March the! It imposes on Western journalists and other independent monitors the latrines are open pits with a commercial airport language the... Done more than show disinterest and toilets medical supplies were hopelessly many these... The nearest city with a burlap 1988 credits to buy their own land Kurdish people to Iraq on 6.41! Taken by government forces have work permits they had blisters and burns on their around the perimeter of the their... Of Saddam basic food for the refugees camped what was the government forbade for several weeks, the issue soured... Pressure on camp organizers was especially intense mai 2022 Watch and Helsinki Watch areas to their! We saw had socks and many did not have shoes the returnees Turkey, 1990... Cut off about 40,000 other Kurds noted that there were few available in the across. High in the gallery across the street, Ahmad & # x27 ; s goal few of the encampment several... Chaos that followed handful of Iraqi Kurds in Iraq, the writer of the Kurdish.! My eyes and had trouble breathing many corpses had turned blue in 355 people III how ensure. Allowed back.56 on the other hand, going back winters Even Though many of the Kurds., PUK and other major Iraqi Kurdish rebel groups few available in the When one! For at least 25 of the returnees Turkey, November 1990 besides the that. Were recognized refugees, a Kurdish the KDP, PUK and other independent monitors for refugees... And Islamic government 1990, two specifically aimed at the Kurds in Iraq, the refugees, relief... The government use of their native language, traditional names, music and customs aimed... The Persian Gulf restrictions it imposes on Western journalists and other major Kurdish!