Kurdish separatism in Iran

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Kurdish separatism in Iran

PJAK fighters in 2012
Date1918 (1918) – present
(106 years)[9][10]
(main phase 1943[11] – present[12])
Location
Iran, Iran-Iraqi Kurdistan border areas
For a map, see here
Status

Ongoing

  • Several tribal revolts during 1918–1943
  • 1946 failed attempt to establish the Republic of Mahabad
  • Political crackdown on Kurdish political associations in Iran[13]
  • Ceasefire between Iran and
    PJAK
    established in September 2011, but fighting resumed in 2013
  • Renewed clashes between
    KDPI
    and Iranian military erupt in 2015
  • In 2022, after the merger of the two democratic parties and the two Komale parties, and at the same time as the Kurdish opposition parties supported Iran's nationwide protests, a new round of conflicts began, which led to the bombing of the bases of the Kurdish parties by the Iranian government.
Belligerents

Sublime State of Persia (1918–25)

Shekak tribesmen
Supported by:
 Ottoman Empire[1]
Iran Imperial State of Iran (1925–79)

Supported by:
 Soviet Union[2]

Council of the Islamic Revolution
(1979)

Iran Islamic Republic of Iran (1979−)

Supported by:

1979–96

Supported by:

2004–11

PJAK

2016–22

2022–

Supported by:

Commanders and leaders

Ahmad Shah Qajar (1918−25)

Iran Reza Shah Pahlavi (1925−41)
Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (MIA) (1941−79)

# (1979−89)
Iran Ali Khamenei
(1981−present)
Iran Ebrahim Raisi (2021−)
Iran Hassan Rouhani (2013−2021)
Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005−2013)
Iran Mohammad Khatami (1997−2005)
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
(1989−1997) Iran Mohammad-Ali Rajai † (1981−1981)
Iran Abolhassan Banisadr (MIA) (1980−1981)

Iran Qasem Soleimani † (2020)

Simko Shikak (1918–1930)

Qazi Muhammad Executed
Mustafa Barzani
Jafar Sultan
Ahmed Barzani
Soviet Union Salahuddin Kazimov

Abdullah Mohtadi

Haji Ahmadi (2004–2011)
Majid Kavian †

Hussein Yazdanpanah

Hussein Yazdanpanah
Casualties and losses
23,000 killed (1979–1996)[14](according to the KDPI) 5,000 killed (1979–1996)[14](according to the KDPI)
30,000 civilians killed (1980–2000)(according to the KDPI)[15]
15,000+ individuals killed (1946–present)[16]

Kurdish separatism in Iran[17] or the Kurdish–Iranian conflict[18][19] is an ongoing,[9][12][17][20] long-running, separatist dispute between the Kurdish opposition in Western Iran and the governments of Iran,[17] lasting since the emergence of Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1918.[9]

The earliest Kurdish separatist activities in modern times refer to tribal revolts in today's

Iran-PJAK conflict started in 2004.[22]

Iran never employed the same level of brutality against its own Kurdish population, but has always been staunchly opposed to Kurdish separatism.[23]

Background

Further information:
Battle of Dimdim

History

Tribalism and early nationalism

Simko's first revolt (1918–1922)

Main article:
Simko Shikak revolt

The

massacring thousands of Assyrians and "harassing" democrats.[28] Still, some Kurds today revere Simko as a hero of the independence movement.[20]

1926 Simko rebellion in Persia

Main article:
1926 Shikak revolt

By 1926, Simko had regained control of his tribe and begun another outright rebellion against the state.[29] When the army engaged him, half of his troops defected to the tribe's previous leader and Simqu fled to Iraq.[29]

Jafar Sultan revolt

Main article: Jafar Sultan revolt

Jafar Sultan of

Hewraman region took control of the region between Marivan and north of Halabja
and remained independent until 1925. After four years under Persian rule, the tribal leader revolted in 1929, but was effectively crushed.

Hama Rashid revolt

Second World War, following the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran.[30] The tribal revolt erupted in the general atmosphere of anarchy throughout Iran and its main faction was led by Muhammed Rashid, lasting from late 1941 until April 1942 and then re-erupted in 1944, resulting in Rashid's defeat. It is considered one of the factors to lead to the establishment of the Kurdish political independence movement
in 1945–6.

Political separatism

Mahabad crisis

Main articles: Iran crisis of 1946 and Republic of Mahabad
Qazi Muhammad and Mustafa Barzani during the 1946 events

The danger of fragmentation in modern Iran became evident shortly after

West Azerbaijan Province). It arose along with Azerbaijan People's Government, another Soviet puppet state.[23][35] The state itself encompassed a very small territory, including Mahabad and the adjacent cities, unable to incorporate the southern Iranian Kurdistan, which fell inside the Anglo-American zone, and unable to attract the tribes outside Mahabad itself to the nationalist cause.[23] As a result, when the Soviets withdrew from Iran in December 1946, government forces were able to enter Mahabad unopposed.[23] Some 1,000 died during the crisis.[12]

KDP-I and Komala, but those two organization have never advocated a separate Kurdish state or greater Kurdistan as did the PKK in Turkey.[36][27][37][38]

1967 Kurdish revolt

Main article: 1967 Kurdish revolt in Iran

In mid-1960s a series of Kurdish tribal disturbances erupted in Western Iran, fed up by the revival of the Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran (KDP-I).[9] In 1967-8 Iranian government troops suppressed a Kurdish revolt in Western Iran,[12] consolidating the previous Kurdish uprisings in Mahabad-Urumiya region.

1979 rebellion

Islamic Revolution. The rebellion ended in December 1982, with 10,000 killed and 200,000 displaced.[12]

KDPI insurgency

Main article: KDPI insurgency (1989–1996)
Further information: List of Iranian assassinations

Insurrection by the KDPI took place in Iranian Kurdistan through early and mid-90s, initiated by assassination of its leader in exile in July 1989. The KDPI insurrection ended in 1996, following a successful Iranian campaign of targeted assassinations of KDPI leaders and crackdown on its support bases in Western Iran. In 1996, KDPI announced a unilateral cease fire, and has since acted at low profile before renewed clashes in 2015.[39]

PJAK insurrection

Main article: Iran–PJAK conflict

Iranian media and various Western analysts.[17][40][41] The PJAK goal is an establishment of a Kurdish autonomy and according to Habeeb they do not pose any serious threat to the regime of the Islamic Republic.[17]

In one of the first actions of the

offensive on PJAK bases. After the cease fire agreement, a number of clashes between PJAK and IRGC took place in 2012,[20]
and by mid-2013, the fighting resumed in sporadic incidents, escalating in 2016.

Renewed tensions 2014–present

Escalation and unrest

PDKI fighters.
Further information: Mahabad riots

In January 2014, Iranian forces killed a KDPI party member, while he was disseminating leaflets.[42]

In September 2014, in a number of clashes, the KDPI engaged Iranian security for the first time in many years, killing at least 6 Iranian soldiers.[43] It was unclear whether this was a result of change of policy by the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (which evaded violence since 1996) or an isolated sequence of incidents.

In May 2015, a suspected Iranian attack (allegedly disguised as PKK fighters) on PJAK force on Iranian–Iraqi Kurdistan border resulted in 6 killed—2 KDPI and 4 PKK[44] (or allegedly Iranian agents).

On 7 May 2015, ethnic Kurds rioted in

PDKI
.

In June 2015, a KDPI attack on Revolutionary Guard forces reportedly left 6 people killed.[48]

Low-level insurgency (2016–present)

Main article: Western Iran clashes (2016–present)

Military clashes in West Iran[49] refers to the ongoing military clashes between Kurdish insurgent party Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, which began in April 2016. Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) and Komalah expressed their support to the Kurdish cause of PDKI as well, with both clashing with Iranian security forces in 2016 and 2017 respectively. In parallel, a leftist Iranian Kurdish rebel group PJAK resumed military activities against Iran in 2016, following a long period of stalemate.

The 2016 clashes came following a background of what PDKI described as "growing discontent in Rojhelat".[50] The commander of the PAK military wing described their engagement and declaration of hostilities against the Iranian government were due to the fact that "the situation in eastern Kurdistan (Iranian Kurdistan) has become unbearable, especially with the daily arbitrary executions against the Kurds [in Iran]".[51]

Iran has periodically launched strikes against the KDPI and other Iranian Kurdish dissident groups based in the frontier of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. In March 2023, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, who came to power via a coalition of Iranian-backed parties, signed a border security agreement with Iran to tighten up the frontier between the two countries. On 28 August, Iraq agreed to disarm and relocate these groups to camps near Mosul by 19 September.[52][53] However, according to the New Arab, these groups have not been disarmed, nor does Iraq seem to have the capability to do so.[54]

See also

References

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External links

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