The Kurds of Iraq

The Kurds of Iraq have been making headlines for many decades: in the eighties and early nineties mostly as victims of brutal suppression, in the mid-nineties as victims of each other’s heavy in-fighting, and since then mainly through their success in achieving a high degree of independence and prosperity within Iraq.
The Kurds of Iraq is a book about the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, governed by the highly autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government. The IKR has a 200,000-strong army (reservists included), its own borders and border patrols, and even its very own stamps. In stark contrast with its volatile past, the IKR, often referred to as “The Other Iraq”, enjoys a high degree of safety and a booming economy.
While most books about the Kurds of Iraq focus solely on military, political and humanitarian issues, this book provides unique insights into their farming methods, the position of women, journalism, telecommunications, life in the villages, leisure and, not least, the magnificent archaeological treasures to be found there.

Michiel Hegener is a geographer/cartographer, and has been working as a journalist since 1984. He has made twelve trips to the Kurds of Iraq, the first in 1973 when he was just 21. His photographs and articles about the Kurds have appeared in the Dutch daily NRC Handelsblad, the weekly HP/De Tijd, the Irish daily The Irish Examiner, as well as other media in countries around the world.

The Kurds of Iraq
by Michiel Hegener
22 x 24 cm, 228 pages
40.000 words, 215 photos, 6 maps
price: varies, see under 'order'
ISBN 978 90 5330 617 8
publisher: Schilt Publishing
(formerly Mets & Schilt), Amsterdam
release: 8 May 2009