Background: The Kurds

The Kurds are a nation of 25 million people without their own state. Their settlement area is around 500 000 square kilometers, roughly the size of France. Most Kurds live in Turkey (at least 12 million), Iraq (nearly 5 million, Iran (5.5 million) and Syria (move up to 1.3 million). Other Kurds in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Turkey is fighting the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan, PKK) since 1984, with bloody attacks and bombings for their own state or at least autonomy. Died in the conflict so far up to 40 000 people. The European Union classify the PKK as a terrorist group and successor organizations. In the wake of EU accession talks in Ankara gave the Kurds more cultural rights, concessions were made for greater autonomy, however. There have been repeated attacks on Kurdish extremists on Turkish security forces. Northern Iraq is considered PKK safe haven. Multiple attacked the Turkish army will be presumed to Kurdish positions.Since the end of the reign of Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi Kurds manage their affairs in a largely autonomous region itself. Their settlement area contains rich oil deposits. Economic advances have improved the situation of the Kurds in the bloody power struggle between Sunnis and Shiites state clearly shaken. Thousands of Syrian Kurds were fleeing the fighting in their homeland in northern Iraq. The Syrian Kurds live mainly in the north of the country along the border with Turkey. Parts of the Kurds joined the opposition to President Bashar al-Assad, others hold him. Of a new leadership in Damascus, Assad's opponents promise more autonomy and cultural rights. The Kurd living in exile in Sweden since June Abdel Baset Saida leads the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC). According to the Syrian Kurdish Future movement, the PKK, now controlled parts of northern Syria. Many leaders of the PKK are Syrian Kurds. Since 1999 in Turkey, a life sentence verbüßende former PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan lived undisturbed for years in Damascus.