Written by
Blog
Kobani’s new administrative formula shows what post-SDF integration looks like
The new administrative lineup in Kobani is beginning to reveal the kind of formula emerging in the district after the late January SDF-Damascus integration agreement. What is notable is not…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Turkey, Syria, and Iraq edge toward a rail corridor that bypasses the KRG
On April 4, 2026, Turkish Transportation Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu announced that Ankara will revive “the railway line from Nusaybin to Qamishli, thus connecting to both Syria and Iraq,” noting that…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Exposed and Disposable: Why Iranian Kurdish Groups May Be the War’s Biggest Losers
As the United States and Iran are reported to have reached a tentative two-week ceasefire, attention is already turning to the likely winners and losers. Most of that discussion is…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Has the Kurdish Moment in Iran Passed?
In the early days of the Iran war, there was serious discussion about deploying Iranian Kurdish armed groups as a ground force alongside the air campaign. That discussion coincided with…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Iraq’s Oil Exports Collapsed by 82% in March as SOMO Scrambles to Build Emergency Alternatives
The war’s first full month wiped out most of Iraq’s seaborne export capacity. The patchwork of fallback routes Baghdad assembled kept some revenue flowing, but March’s earnings covered less than…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Bombed by Both Sides, Iraq Faces a War That Could Unravel It From Within
The map of Iraq since February 28 shows three overlapping wartime geographies layered inside one state. Anti-PMF strikes have spread across Anbar, Nineveh, Kirkuk, Salah al-Din, Baghdad and Babil. Iranian…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Iraq’s Government Deadlock Has Produced Two Cross-Sectarian Camps Fighting Over One Session
Iraq’s parliament has scheduled a session on 11 April to elect a president, after a late-March signature drive claiming more than 220 MPs forced the question into the open. If…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Why Iran’s Kurds Are the Most Divided Kurdish Population
The Kurds of Iran are the most internally divided Kurdish population across all four parts of Kurdistan. Dialect, sect, geography, and five centuries inside an Iranian state have produced a…
Read More (3 min. read)
Written by
Arivan
Deterrence, Division, and Decay: How Iran Politically Contains Iranian Kurdish Armed Groups
Iran’s strategy toward Iranian Kurdish armed groups is not built around concessions. It is built around political deterrence, selective differentiation, and the exploitation of organizational weakness. This political layer sat…
Read More (3 min. read)