Kurdistan news stories on Newser

Iran OKs Visit by Moms of Detained US Hikers

Nick McMaster — Mon, 10 May 2010 15:55:00 CDT

Iran will allow the mothers of the three American hikers who have been in custody for nearly a year to visit their children. Tehran has ordered its UN mission to issue visas for the three moms, the AP reports, but no date has been has been set. Iran has told...

US Hikers Held in Iran Took Big Risks

Kevin Spak — Mon, 03 May 2010 14:25:29 CDT

How hard is it to accidentally cross the border from Kurdish Iraq into Iran, as Sarah Shourd, Josh Fattal, and Shane Bauer did last year? Outside magazine dispatched Joshua Hammer to retrace their steps and find out. His conclusion? The three demonstrated a “shocking lack of preparation,” but they also...

USC Prof Fights Terror Charge for Backing Kurds

Emily Rauhala — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 03:51:46 CST

A USC professor and human rights activist heads to the Supreme Court next week to fight terror charges for supporting Turkey's Kurdish minority. Ralph Fertig, 79, is a self-described pacifist who says he counseled local leaders on how to peacefully pursue their cause. Those leaders, however, may have been members...

American Adviser to Kurds Outed as Oil Shareholder

Jane Yager — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:15:18 CST

An influential American advocate for Iraqi Kurds, who helped successfully secure Kurdish control over new oil finds in northern Iraq in the country's constitution, stands to reap more than $100 million from the policy he shaped. Peter Galbraith, it turns out, received rights to an enormous oil stake in Kurdistan...

Kurds Threaten to Block Iraqi Election

Rob Quinn — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:18:29 CDT

A dispute over the oil-rich province of Kirkuk is threatening to delay the Iraqi elections scheduled for January and push Arab-Kurd tensions past the breaking point. Kurdish lawmakers in the Iraqi parliament have vowed to block a vote on a new election law unless authorities agree to use voter records...

Iran Allows Swiss Envoys Visit With Detained Hikers

Nick McMaster — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:10:12 CDT

Iran has changed its policy on three detained US hikers, allowing Swiss diplomats—who represent American interests in Iran—to visit them. Officials have been denied access to the three Americans since they were detained in July after crossing the border from Iraqi Kurdistan into Iran. Tehran’s reversal may be...

Ahmadinejad Says He'll Seek Leniency for US Hikers

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:36:53 CDT

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said today he will request leniency for three American hikers who apparently strayed across Iran's border. Ahmadinejad said the Americans broke the law, and "we're not happy that this happened." He added, "What I can ask is that the judiciary expedites the process and gives it...

Iranian TV: Captured US Hikers Are CIA Spies

Kevin Spak — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:01:36 CDT

The three American hikers nabbed by Iranian authorities after allegedly crossing the border from Iraq were actually spies, an Iranian TV report claims. The Tehran-based station quotes an Iraqi policeman as saying the three were “working with the CIA.” Hillary Clinton meanwhile asked the Iranian government today for more information...

Family Confirms US Hiker's Arrest in Iran

Jason Farago — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 06:02:13 CDT

The mother of one of the three Americans detained while hiking near the Iran-Iraq border confirmed that her son has been arrested by Iranian security forces, reports CNN. Joshua Fattal of Pennsylvania and two friends, who were warned by Iraqi police not to hike in the border region, were seized...