Political scientist and author Professor Francis Fukuyama, best known for his controversial 1989 essay “The End of History”, warns that America is stuck in a “democratic recession”. Far from basking in the victory of liberal democracy as the natural conclusion of mankind’s political evolution, Fukuyama says the United States is suffering a crisis of national […]
Read more30 years since Iran-Iraq ceasefire, explosives still take lives and limbs
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – “The human becomes half a human when you lose a leg,” says Khalid Hassan, easing into a plastic lawn chair in the doorway of his carpentry workshop in Choman, near the Iranian border. Like so many in this small town high in the Zagros Mountains, Khalid lost a leg treading on […]
Read moreYezidi women must not face rape stigma: Congolese doctor Mukwege
Photo: Panzi Foundation ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — World renowned gynecologist and women’s rights campaigner Dr Denis Mukwege visited Duhok and Lalish in late June to meet Yezidi women recovering from the ordeal of sexual slavery at the hands of ISIS. Mukwege, 63, who is widely celebrated for his work treating victims of rape […]
Read morePeshmerga survives ISIS war only to fall wounded in Hashd skirmish
Minyar sets aside his walking stick and shakes a can of white spray paint. On a hot afternoon in Kawergosk, a village straddling a Syrian refugee camp northwest of Erbil, the lean 23-year-old sketches a rough target on a bare yellow wall. Adjusting his gauze eyepatch and donning his aviators, he switches the safety off […]
Read moreVIDEO: Iraq’s election: What happens next?
With meeting after meeting of political leaders in Baghdad, boycotts, and protests, here is a brief explainer of what’s going on. Video produced by Robert Edwards, edited by Mehmed Alsafar, voiced by Chris Johannas
Read moreYouth unemployment a major challenge for Iraq’s next government
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iraq’s next government has a problem. Almost half the population is under the age of 19 and unemployment among 15-24 year olds already stands at 18 percent. Unless opportunities are created for them, their disillusionment will only grow. According to the latest figures from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the […]
Read moreVIDEO: Iraq’s first post-ISIS election explained
Polls are open on Saturday, May 12 from 7am to 6pm across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region as voters elect a new parliament, the first election after ISIS. Video by: Robert Edwards and Mehmed Alsafar
Read moreIraqi politics ‘not even close’ to achieving women’s equality: female voters
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Female candidates standing in Iraq’s 2018 parliamentary election have faced a barrage of threats, defamation, and public shaming. Voters and activists say Iraq is a long way off from achieving gender equality in politics. Twenty-five percent of the parliament’s 329 seats are reserved for women in the May 12 election. It […]
Read moreFrom Afrin to Erbil: One refugee family’s journey
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Ahmad and his daughter Berivan are from Afrin. They are among the first refugees from the city to reach Erbil since Turkish forces and their Syrian proxies seized the northeast Syrian canton in March. Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch on January 20 with the stated aim of pushing the Kurdish Democratic […]
Read moreAsian migrants in Erbil share stories of hope and struggle on Labour Day
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Ankawa is probably Erbil’s most diverse neighborhood, home to migrant workers from across southern and east Asia. Working long hours, often on low pay, and many of them trapped in rigid contracts, the workers who come to Kurdistan are rarely asked: was it worth it? “The company lied to me. I […]
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