Quote Originally Posted by Philipvs Vallindervs Calicvla View Post
Comparison to modern Israel may have been a bit harsh, but the first thing the Kurds did in the current crisis was establish control over a city in the border regions after the Iraqi army fled.

Perhaps it would be better to say that a Kurdish state will be for Kurds, which means it will not be for Arabs, though they will probably be tolerated.
Supposedly, the Kurds regard Kirkuk as their real capital city. Some more background information on its seizure:

Kirkuk city, which has a mixed population of Kurds, Arabs and Turkmen, has long been a thorny issue in Iraqi politics.

Its special status as a disputed city was recognised in the post-Saddam Hussein Iraqi constitution, which called for the situation in the city to be "normalised" by:

  • The return to the south of Arabs settled there by the deposed ruler
  • The restoration of expelled Kurds
  • A census
  • A referendum on whether the province should join the Kurdistan autonomous region.


But that has never happened, and Kirkuk, as well as other disputed areas along the Arab-Kurdish ethnic fault line, have been flashpoints for friction between Kurdish forces and Iraqi government troops.

Now, the latter have melted away, leaving Kirkuk to fall into the hands of the Kurds like a ripe fruit.