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Kurdification is a cultural change in which something ethnically non-Kurdish is made to become Kurdish, usually in contexts of post-Saddam Iraq, in particular in relation to Assyrian Christians, Iraqi Turkmen, Shabak people and the ethno-religious group of the Yazidis.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4] The term is mainly used for the implementation of article 140 of the Iraqi constitution which ensured to restore the situation before Saddam Hussein's assimilation and deportation policies.

History

Kurdification has been an open policy of the KRG since 2003, according to Gareth Stansfield, a professor of Middle East politics at the University of Exeter.^[5]

Kurds have annexed Assyrian, Yazidi and Shabak villages which are now under Kurdish Control in North Iraq and in Turkey.^[6]^[7] In some towns, Assyrian politicians have been replaced with Kurdish ones.^[8] The entire Assyrian Triangle (between Greater Zab and the River Tigris) has been occupied by Kurdish intruders.^[9]^[10]

It is alleged that Kurds have clear plans for the annexation of the Nineveh Plains to the Kurdish occupation and they have always attempted to interrupt international protection for Assyrians in international forums.^[11] The Hareetz newspaper reported that the Kurds object to the establishment of a protected Christian enclave, because they want to annex the Nineveh Valley, most of whose residents are Christians.^[12]^[13]

Some Yazidis expressed concern over forced assimilation into Kurdish culture and identity. Some have accused the Kurdish parties of diverting US $12 million reconstruction funds allocated for Yazidi areas in Jebel Sinjar to a Kurdish village and marginalizing them politically.^[14] According to the Human Rights Watch, in 2009, "The goal of these tactics is to push Shabak and Yazidi communities to identify as ethnic Kurds. The Kurdish authorities are working hard to impose Kurdish identity on two of the most vulnerable minorities in Iraq, the Yazidis and the Shabaks".^[15]

Yazidi activists have reported that, since 2003, there have been numerous cases of Yazidi women being abducted and forced to marry members of the Kurdish security force Asayish. A report from Minority Rights Group International.^[16]

In addition to the Kurdish-speaking majority, there are significant Yazidi communities that speak Arabic as their native mother language.^[17] In 2002, at the request of a group of Yazidis led by Tamoyan, the Armenian parliament recognized the Yazidis as a separate ethnicity.^[18] The United Nations recognizes the Yazidis as a distinct ethnic group.^[19]

A quote from a lawyer Kuryo Meytap in an interview: "The policy of Kurdification is operated for decades. The Assyrian history is systematically distorted, many Assyrian villages still be kept busy, the names of the Assyrian cities and villages are specifically converted into Kurdish."^[20]

According to Hunain Qaddo, President of the Iraqi Minorities Council, Shabaks are currently undergoing a process of Kurdification.^[21]

On 15 August 2005, Shabaks organised a demonstration under the slogan "We are the Shabak, NOT Kurds and NOT Arabs", demanding recognition of their unique ethnic identity.The demonstration came under fire from Kurdistan Democratic Party militia.^[22]

On 21 August 2006, Shabak Democratic Party leader Hunain Qaddo, proposed the creation of a separate province within the borders of the Nineveh Plain, in order to combat the Kurdification and Arabization of Iraqi minorities.^[23]

In 2008, Mr Mirza Ismail, chairman of London Yezidis Community-Canada, accused the Kurdistan Regional Government of forcing Yazidis to register as Kurds, expanding Kurdish settlements in Yazidi regions, and forcing Yazidis out of Sinjar city.^[24]

Amnesty International revealed that the Kurdish PYD initiated ethnic cleansing against Turkmens and Arabs after seizing Tal Abyad. The PYD pursues a rigid "Kurdification" policy in the regions it occupies, purifying it of Turkmens and Arabs, and even from dissenting Kurds.^[25] Arabs are also being displaced in previously mixed Kurdish-Arab villages in Iraq.^[26]

The minorities of Iraq have also founded parties to represent their people, for example: the Iraqi Turkmen Front, the Assyrian Patriotic Party, the Yazidi Movement for Reform and Progress and the Shabak Democratic Assembly. They have also founded own militias to defend their villages, for example: the Nineveh Plain Protection Units, the Protection Force of Sinjar and the Nineveh Plains Brigade.^[27]^[28]^[29]^[30]^[31]^[32]

Flags of the ethnic and national minorities in Iraq

Assyrian Flag	Turkmen Flag	Shabak Flag	Yazidi Flag

References

^ Al-Ali, Pratt, Nadje Sadig, Nicola Christine (2009). What kind of liberation?: women and the occupation of Iraq. University of California Press. p. 109. ISBN 978-0-520-25729-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ Preti Taneja, Minority Rights Group International (2007). Assimilation, exodus, eradication: Iraq's minority communities since 2003. Minority Rights Group International. p. 19.
^ "Overcrowding and Kurdification threaten Christians in northern Iraq" (AsiaNews, October 2007)
^ "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.
^ http://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20150810104756.htm
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm
^ https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm
^ https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification
^ https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification, Haaretz newspaper on 24 December 2010
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm
^ "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.
^ Ghanim, David. Iraq's Dysfunctional Democracy. p. 34.
^ http://www.minorityrights.org/5742/iraq/yezidis.html
^ Betts, Robert Brenton (2013). The Sunni-Shi'a Divide: Islam's Internal Divisions and Their Global Consequences.
^ http://rudaw.net/english/people-places/28052014
^ "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.
^ http://bethnahrin.de/2009/08/18/daher-sollten-wir-diese-einrichtungen-durch-gezieltes-werben-in-unserer-umgebung-und-innerhalb-unseres-volkes-dabei-unterstuetzen-dass-das-ace-sowie-das-seyfo-center-finanziell-mehr-unterstuetzt-we/
^ https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD4365_a.html
^ http://www.aina.org/news/20050816114539.htm
^ https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD3283_a.html
^ Ismail, Mirza (2008-12-01). "The Kurdish Threat to The Yezidis of North Iraq". Assyrian International News Agency. Archived from the original on 2008-12-23. Retrieved 26 March 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^ http://www.dailysabah.com/columns/yahya_bostan/2015/10/26/the-pyds-ethnic-cleansing
^ http://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/
^ Quwat Sahl Nīnawā: Iraq’s Shia Shabak Get Their Own Militia
^ Iraq's Shabaks Are Being Oppressed By Kurds (By Hunain Al-Qaddo)
^ Iraqi Turkmen take up arms in Kirkuk
^ The Hero Yazidis Hope Will Save Them
^ Inside the Christian Militias Defending the Nineveh Plains
^ The Nineveh Plain Protection Units

A. Bazzaz, turkmen.nl "The Kurdification procedure was soon implemented by the Kurdish leadership after toppling Saddam down in April 2003"
Park, Bill, The Kurds and post-Saddam political arrangements in Iraq The Adelphi Papers (2005), Taylor & Francis: "The Kurds, who are intent on the further ‘Kurdification’ of Kirkuk before any census is held"
Park, Bill, Iraqi scenarios, The Adelphi Papers, Volume 45, Number 374, May 2005, pp. 49–66
PKK Iran - Strategic Comments, 2004 - informaworld.com "recent months Turkish intelligence has begun to report Turcoman frustration with Ankara’s failure to prevent the increasing ‘Kurdification’ of northern Iraq"

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[1] Al-Ali, Pratt, Nadje Sadig, Nicola Christine (2009). What kind of liberation?: women and the occupation of Iraq. University of California Press. p. 109. ISBN 978-0-520-25729-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[2] Preti Taneja, Minority Rights Group International (2007). Assimilation, exodus, eradication: Iraq's minority communities since 2003. Minority Rights Group International. p. 19.

[3] "Overcrowding and Kurdification threaten Christians in northern Iraq" (AsiaNews, October 2007)

[4] "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.

[5] ttp://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/

[6] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm

[7] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20150810104756.htm

[8] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm

[9] ttps://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification

[10] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm

[11] ttps://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification

[12] ttps://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification, Haaretz newspaper on 24 December 2010

[13] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm

[14] "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.

[15] Ghanim, David. Iraq's Dysfunctional Democracy. p. 34.

[16] ttp://www.minorityrights.org/5742/iraq/yezidis.html

[17] Betts, Robert Brenton (2013). The Sunni-Shi'a Divide: Islam's Internal Divisions and Their Global Consequences.

[18] ttp://rudaw.net/english/people-places/28052014

[19] "UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS" (PDF). p. 11.

[20] ttp://bethnahrin.de/2009/08/18/daher-sollten-wir-diese-einrichtungen-durch-gezieltes-werben-in-unserer-umgebung-und-innerhalb-unseres-volkes-dabei-unterstuetzen-dass-das-ace-sowie-das-seyfo-center-finanziell-mehr-unterstuetzt-we/

[21] ttps://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD4365_a.html

[22] ttp://www.aina.org/news/20050816114539.htm

[23] ttps://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD3283_a.html

[24] Ismail, Mirza (2008-12-01). "The Kurdish Threat to The Yezidis of North Iraq". Assyrian International News Agency. Archived from the original on 2008-12-23. Retrieved 26 March 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)

[25] ttp://www.dailysabah.com/columns/yahya_bostan/2015/10/26/the-pyds-ethnic-cleansing

[26] ttp://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/

[27] Quwat Sahl Nīnawā: Iraq’s Shia Shabak Get Their Own Militia

[28] Iraq's Shabaks Are Being Oppressed By Kurds (By Hunain Al-Qaddo)

[29] Iraqi Turkmen take up arms in Kirkuk

[30] The Hero Yazidis Hope Will Save Them

[31] Inside the Christian Militias Defending the Nineveh Plains

[32] The Nineveh Plain Protection Units

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 [[File:Iraqi Kurdistan in Iraq (de-facto and disputed hatched).svg|thumb|Map of [[Iraqi Kurdistan]]]]
-'''Kurdification''' is a cultural change in which something [[Ethnic group|ethnically]] non-[[Kurdish people|Kurdish]] is made to become Kurdish, usually in contexts of [[Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present|post-Saddam Iraq]], in particular in relation to [[Assyrian people|Assyrian Christians]], [[Iraqi Turkmen]], [[Shabak people]] and the [[Ethnoreligious group|ethno-religious group]] of the [[Yazidis]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ali,  Pratt|first=Nadje Sadig, Nicola Christine|title=What kind of liberation?: women and the occupation of Iraq|year=2009|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-25729-0|pages=109|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=7KnoG_52Jh8C&pg=PA109}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Preti Taneja, Minority Rights Group International|title=Assimilation, exodus, eradication: Iraq's minority communities since 2003|year=2007|publisher=Minority Rights Group International|pages=19|url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,4565c22553,4565c25f653,469cbf9d0,0.html}}</ref><ref>[http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=10562 "Overcrowding and Kurdification threaten Christians in northern Iraq"] (AsiaNews, October 2007)</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR  ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION  NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref> Kurds claim that Kurdification is used for the [[Kirkuk status referendum|implementation of article 140 of the Iraqi constitution]] which ensured to restore the situation before Saddam Hussein's assimilation and deportation policies against the Kurds during [[Al-Anfal Campaign]].
+'''Kurdification''' is a cultural change in which something [[Ethnic group|ethnically]] non-[[Kurdish people|Kurdish]] is made to become Kurdish, usually in contexts of [[Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present|post-Saddam Iraq]], in particular in relation to [[Assyrian people|Assyrian Christians]], [[Iraqi Turkmen]], [[Shabak people]] and the [[Ethnoreligious group|ethno-religious group]] of the [[Yazidis]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Al-Ali,  Pratt|first=Nadje Sadig, Nicola Christine|title=What kind of liberation?: women and the occupation of Iraq|year=2009|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-25729-0|pages=109|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=7KnoG_52Jh8C&pg=PA109}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Preti Taneja, Minority Rights Group International|title=Assimilation, exodus, eradication: Iraq's minority communities since 2003|year=2007|publisher=Minority Rights Group International|pages=19|url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,4565c22553,4565c25f653,469cbf9d0,0.html}}</ref><ref>[http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=10562 "Overcrowding and Kurdification threaten Christians in northern Iraq"] (AsiaNews, October 2007)</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR  ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION  NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref> The term is mainly used for the [[Kirkuk status referendum|implementation of article 140 of the Iraqi constitution]] which ensured to restore the situation before Saddam Hussein's assimilation and deportation policies.
 ==History==
-===In Iraq===
-====Until 2011 (end of U.S. main military presence)====
 Kurdification has been an open policy of the KRG since 2003, according to Gareth Stansfield, a professor of Middle East politics at the University of Exeter.<ref>http://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/</ref>
-Some source have claimed that the Kurds have clear plans for the annexation of the Nineveh Plains to the Kurdish control and they have "always sent their followers to international forums to interrupt international protection for Assyrians".<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification</ref> The Hareetz newspaper reported that the Kurds object to the establishment of a protected Christian enclave, because they want to annex the Nineveh Valley, most of whose residents are Christians.<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification, Haaretz newspaper on 24 December 2010</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm</ref>
+Kurds have annexed Assyrian, Yazidi and Shabak villages which are now under Kurdish Control in North Iraq and in Turkey.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20150810104756.htm</ref> In some towns, Assyrian politicians have been replaced with Kurdish ones.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm</ref> The entire Assyrian Triangle (between Greater Zab and the River Tigris) has been occupied by Kurdish intruders.<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm</ref>
+It is alleged that Kurds have clear plans for the annexation of the Nineveh Plains to the Kurdish occupation and they have always attempted to interrupt  international protection for Assyrians in international forums.<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification</ref> The Hareetz newspaper reported that the Kurds object to the establishment of a protected Christian enclave, because they want to annex the Nineveh Valley, most of whose residents are Christians.<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification, Haaretz newspaper on 24 December 2010</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm</ref>
-Some Yazidis expressed concern over forced assimilation into Kurdish culture and identity. Some have accused the Kurdish parties of diverting US $12 million reconstruction funds allocated for Yazidi areas in [[Sinjar|Jebel Sinjar]] to a Kurdish village and [[marginalizing]] them politically.<ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR  ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION  NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref> According to the [[Human Rights Watch]], in 2009, "The goal of these tactics is to push [[Shabak people|Shabak]] and [[Yazidis|Yazidi]] communities to identify as [[Ethnic group|ethnic]] [[Kurds]]. The Kurdish authorities are working hard to impose Kurdish identity on two of the most vulnerable minorities in Iraq, the Yazidis and the Shabaks".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ghanim|first1=David|title=Iraq's Dysfunctional Democracy|page=34|url=http://books.google.com.tr/books?id=ZZ076ls9unQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Iraq%27s+Dysfunctional+Democracy&hl=tr&sa=X&ei=qsHsU9n8I4rmyQPLs4DYCg&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Iraq's%20Dysfunctional%20Democracy&f=false}}</ref>
+Some Yazidis expressed concern over forced assimilation into Kurdish culture and identity. Some have accused the Kurdish parties of diverting US $12 million reconstruction funds allocated for Yazidi areas in [[Sinjar|Jebel Sinjar]] to a Kurdish village and [[marginalizing]] them politically.<ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR  ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION  NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref>
-Some sources have reported that, since 2003, there have been many cases of Yazidi women being abducted and forced to marry members of the Kurdish security force [[Asayish (Kurdistan Regional Government)|Asayish]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.minorityrights.org/5742/iraq/yezidis.html |accessdate=October 25, 2015 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20150116010104/http://www.minorityrights.org/5742/iraq/yezidis.html |archivedate=January 16, 2015 }}</ref> However, the report was never confirmed by other organizations or authorities.{{cn|date=March 2016}}
+According to the [[Human Rights Watch]], in 2009, "The goal of these tactics is to push [[Shabak people|Shabak]] and [[Yazidis|Yazidi]] communities to identify as [[Ethnic group|ethnic]] [[Kurds]]. The Kurdish authorities are working hard to impose Kurdish identity on two of the most vulnerable minorities in Iraq, the Yazidis and the Shabaks".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ghanim|first1=David|title=Iraq's Dysfunctional Democracy|page=34|url=http://books.google.com.tr/books?id=ZZ076ls9unQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Iraq%27s+Dysfunctional+Democracy&hl=tr&sa=X&ei=qsHsU9n8I4rmyQPLs4DYCg&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Iraq's%20Dysfunctional%20Democracy&f=false}}</ref>
+Yazidi activists have reported that, since 2003, there have been numerous cases of Yazidi women being abducted and forced to marry members of the Kurdish security force [[Asayish (Kurdistan Regional Government)|Asayish]].
-In addition to the Kurdish-speaking majority, there are also Yazidi communities that speak [[Arabic]] as their native mother language.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Betts|first1=Robert Brenton|title=The Sunni-Shi'a Divide: Islam's Internal Divisions and Their Global Consequences|date=2013|url=http://books.google.com.tr/books?id=luSHLVR5XZUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Sunni-Shi%27a+Divide:+Islam%27s+Internal+Divisions+and+Their+Global+Consequences&hl=tr&sa=X&ei=HUn0U_PlN8agyAOBh4GIBw&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=arabic%20speaking%20yazidis&f=false}}</ref> In 2002, at the request of a group of Yazidis led by Tamoyan, the [[Armenia]]n parliament recognized the Yazidis as a separate [[Ethnic group|ethnicity]].<ref>http://rudaw.net/english/people-places/28052014</ref>  The [[United Nations]] also recognizes the Yazidis as a distinct [[ethnic group]].<ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref>
+A report from [[Minority Rights Group International]].<ref>http://www.minorityrights.org/5742/iraq/yezidis.html</ref>
+In addition to the Kurdish-speaking majority, there are significant Yazidi communities that speak [[Arabic]] as their native mother language.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Betts|first1=Robert Brenton|title=The Sunni-Shi'a Divide: Islam's Internal Divisions and Their Global Consequences|date=2013|url=http://books.google.com.tr/books?id=luSHLVR5XZUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Sunni-Shi%27a+Divide:+Islam%27s+Internal+Divisions+and+Their+Global+Consequences&hl=tr&sa=X&ei=HUn0U_PlN8agyAOBh4GIBw&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=arabic%20speaking%20yazidis&f=false}}</ref> In 2002, at the request of a group of Yazidis led by Tamoyan, the [[Armenia]]n parliament recognized the Yazidis as a separate [[Ethnic group|ethnicity]].<ref>http://rudaw.net/english/people-places/28052014</ref>  The [[United Nations]] recognizes the Yazidis as a distinct [[ethnic group]].<ref>{{cite web|title=UNHCR’s ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION NEEDS OF IRAQI ASYLUM-SEEKERS|page=11|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/46deb05557.pdf}}</ref>
 A quote from a lawyer Kuryo Meytap in an interview: "The policy of Kurdification is operated for decades. The [[Assyria]]n history is systematically distorted, many Assyrian villages still be kept busy, the names of the Assyrian cities and villages are specifically converted into [[Kurdish languages|Kurdish]]."<ref>http://bethnahrin.de/2009/08/18/daher-sollten-wir-diese-einrichtungen-durch-gezieltes-werben-in-unserer-umgebung-und-innerhalb-unseres-volkes-dabei-unterstuetzen-dass-das-ace-sowie-das-seyfo-center-finanziell-mehr-unterstuetzt-we/</ref>
@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 According to [[Hunain Qaddo]], President of the [[Iraqi Minorities Council]], Shabaks are currently undergoing a process of Kurdification.<ref>https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD4365_a.html</ref>
-On 15 August 2005, Shabaks organised a demonstration under the slogan "We are the Shabak, not the Kurds and not the Arabs", demanding recognition of their unique ethnic identity. The demonstration came under fire from [[Kurdistan Democratic Party]] militia.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20050816114539.htm</ref>
+On 15 August 2005, Shabaks organised a demonstration under the slogan "We are the Shabak, NOT Kurds and NOT Arabs", demanding recognition of their unique ethnic identity.The demonstration came under fire from [[Kurdistan Democratic Party]] militia.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20050816114539.htm</ref>
 On 21 August 2006, Shabak Democratic Party leader Hunain Qaddo, proposed the creation of a separate province within the borders of the Nineveh Plain, in order to combat the Kurdification and Arabization of Iraqi minorities.<ref>https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/06BAGHDAD3283_a.html</ref>
@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 In 2008, Mr Mirza Ismail, chairman of London Yezidis Community-Canada, accused the Kurdistan Regional Government of forcing Yazidis to register as Kurds, expanding Kurdish settlements in Yazidi regions, and forcing Yazidis out of [[Sinjar]] city.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ismail|first1=Mirza|title=The Kurdish Threat to The Yezidis of North Iraq|url=http://www.aina.org/guesteds/20081201015903.htm|publisher=Assyrian International News Agency|accessdate=26 March 2015|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20081223112315/http://www.aina.org/guesteds/20081201015903.htm|archivedate=2008-12-23|date=2008-12-01|deadurl=no}}</ref>
+[[Amnesty International]] revealed that the Kurdish PYD initiated ethnic cleansing against Turkmens and Arabs after seizing Tal Abyad. The PYD pursues a rigid "Kurdification" policy in the regions it occupies, purifying it of Turkmens and Arabs, and even from dissenting Kurds.<ref>http://www.dailysabah.com/columns/yahya_bostan/2015/10/26/the-pyds-ethnic-cleansing</ref> Arabs are also being displaced in previously mixed Kurdish-Arab villages in Iraq.<ref>http://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/</ref>
-The minorities of Iraq have also founded parties to represent their people, for example: the [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]], the [[Assyrian Patriotic Party]], the [[Yazidi Movement for Reform and Progress]] and the [[Shabak Democratic Assembly]]. They have also founded own militias to defend their villages, for example: the [[Nineveh Plain Protection Units]], the [[Protection Force of Sinjar]] and the [[Nineveh Plains Brigade]].<ref>[http://jihadology.net/2015/01/12/hizballah-cavalcade-quwat-sahl-ninawa-iraqs-shia-shabak-get-their-own-militia/ Quwat Sahl Nīnawā: Iraq’s Shia Shabak Get Their Own Militia ]</ref><ref>[http://www.aina.org/guesteds/20050828120403.htm Iraq's Shabaks Are Being Oppressed By Kurds (By Hunain Al-Qaddo)]</ref><ref>[http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/06/tastekin-iraqi-turkmen-isis-kirkuk-mosul-arms-itf.html Iraqi Turkmen take up arms in Kirkuk]</ref><ref>[http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/10/a-yazidi-super-hero-who-won-t-go-away.html The Hero Yazidis Hope Will Save Them]</ref><ref>[https://medium.com/war-is-boring/inside-the-christian-militias-defending-the-nineveh-plains-fe4a10babeed Inside the Christian Militias Defending the Nineveh Plains]</ref><ref>[http://www.restoreninevehnow.org/?page_id=153 The Nineveh Plain Protection Units]</ref> Arabs are also being displaced in previously mixed Kurdish-Arab villages in Iraq.<ref>http://time.com/3182347/kurds-sunni-arabs-iraq-isis-erbil/</ref>
+The minorities of Iraq have also founded parties to represent their people, for example: the [[Iraqi Turkmen Front]], the [[Assyrian Patriotic Party]], the [[Yazidi Movement for Reform and Progress]] and the [[Shabak Democratic Assembly]].
-====After 2011====
+They have also founded own militias to defend their villages, for example: the [[Nineveh Plain Protection Units]], the [[Protection Force of Sinjar]] and the [[Nineveh Plains Brigade]].<ref>[http://jihadology.net/2015/01/12/hizballah-cavalcade-quwat-sahl-ninawa-iraqs-shia-shabak-get-their-own-militia/ Quwat Sahl Nīnawā: Iraq’s Shia Shabak Get Their Own Militia ]</ref><ref>[http://www.aina.org/guesteds/20050828120403.htm Iraq's Shabaks Are Being Oppressed By Kurds (By Hunain Al-Qaddo)]</ref><ref>[http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/06/tastekin-iraqi-turkmen-isis-kirkuk-mosul-arms-itf.html Iraqi Turkmen take up arms in Kirkuk]</ref><ref>[http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/10/a-yazidi-super-hero-who-won-t-go-away.html The Hero Yazidis Hope Will Save Them]</ref><ref>[https://medium.com/war-is-boring/inside-the-christian-militias-defending-the-nineveh-plains-fe4a10babeed Inside the Christian Militias Defending the Nineveh Plains]</ref><ref>[http://www.restoreninevehnow.org/?page_id=153 The Nineveh Plain Protection Units]</ref>
+==Flags of the ethnic and national minorities in Iraq==
-Assyrian International News Agency claim that the Kurds have annexed Assyrian, Yazidi and Shabak villages which are now under Kurdish Control in North Iraq and in Turkey.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20150810104756.htm</ref> In Iraqi Kurdistan, Assyrian politicians of some towns have been replaced with Kurdish ones.<ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20140614185547.htm</ref> The entire Assyrian Triangle (between Greater Zab and the River Tigris) has been occupied by Kurdish intruders.<ref>https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/middle-east/14007-assyrians-need-protection-from-islamisation-and-kurdification</ref><ref>http://www.aina.org/news/20110930190835.htm</ref> Some Assyrians have also complained that they have limited rights and that there are threats against them. Some Assyrians in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq also complained that construction plans are "aimed at affecting a demographic change that divides Assyrian blocs". Also some Yazidis, Shabaks and Turkmens have reported that they are facing a policy of cultural and security control against them, especially in areas which belonged to the Kurds before Saddam's [[Al-Anfal Campaign]].<ref>http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/09/iraq-kurdistan-region-protect-minority-rights.html</ref>
+{| class="wikitable"
-===In Syria===
+|-
-In October 2015, Amnesty International said YPG had driven thousands of civilians from northern Syria and destroyed their homes in retaliation for perceived links to ISIL. Majority of the destroyed homes belonged to the Arabs, but also to Turkmens and Kurds.<ref>{{cite news|title=Syria Kurds 'razing villages seized from IS' - Amnesty - BBC News|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34511134|accessdate=21 January 2016|work=BBC News|language=en-GB}}</ref> Turkish Daily Sabah claimed that Amnesty International has said that Kurdish PYD conducted ethnic cleansing against Turkmens and Arabs after seizing Tal Abyad.<ref>{{cite news|title=The PYDs ethnic cleansing|url=http://www.dailysabah.com/columns/yahya_bostan/2015/10/26/the-pyds-ethnic-cleansing|accessdate=21 January 2016|work=DailySabah}}</ref> However, Amnesty International has published only one report about the Syrian Kurdish forces and it is related to destroying villages and homes, not ethnic cleansing at all.<ref>{{cite news|title=The official Amnesty International report|url=https://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/syria_nowhere_to_go_english-final.pdf|accessdate=21 January 2016}}</ref> The Amnesty International report concluded that there are documented cases of forced displacement that constitute war crimes. <ref>https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde24/2503/2015/en/</ref>
+! Assyrian Flag !! Turkmen Flag !! Shabak Flag !! Yazidi Flag
+|-
+| [[File:Flag of Assyria.svg|frameless|Assyrian Flag]] || [[File:Flag of Iraq Turkmen Front.svg|frameless|Turkmen Flag]] || [[File:Shabak Flag.jpg|frameless|Shabak Flag]] || [[File:Yezidi Flag SVG.svg|frameless|Yazidi Flag]]
+|}
 == See also ==
 *[[Cultural assimilation]]
 *[[Iraqi minorities]]
-*[[Kurdistan Regional Government]]
+*[[Kurdistan Regional Government]] in Iraq
 *[[Iraqi Turkmen]]
 *[[Yazidis in Armenia]]
@@ Line 61: / Line 66: @@
 [[Category:Iraqi Kurdistan]]
 [[Category:Kurdish nationalism]]
+{{culture-stub}}