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SULAIMANIYAH,
Kurdistan-Iraq, March 19 -- Like most young Kurds in
this northern city, Asad Ali does not speak Arabic.
He has heard about the rising wave of sectarian
killings down in Baghdad, but it seems a world away
from the quiet rhythms of daily life here in
Kurdistan.
So when a discussion broke out near an outdoor book
market about whether there would be civil war
between Shiite and Sunni Arabs in Iraq, Mr. Ali, a
24-year-old who wears rimless glasses and blue
jeans, did not hesitate to give his opinion.
"It is beautiful that our enemies are killing each
other," he said with a grim chuckle.
It is not an unusual view here. Kurdistan may be
part of Iraq in the legal sense, but most Kurds view
the Arabs, whether Sunni or Shiite, as foreign
oppressors. The fact that the Arabs are now fighting
among themselves evokes little sympathy.
For many Kurds, the main danger of a civil war is
that it might spread northward, threatening the
relative stability they have enjoyed since the
American invasion in 2003. Although Kurdistan is
virtually an ethnic monolith, the major cities on
its borders, Kirkuk and Mosul, have substantial Arab
populations and are far more violent.
So the prospect of a civil war makes many Kurds
yearn all the more fiercely for separate national
status. Some even say such a war might help them
make their case.
"I think the violence down in Baghdad will lead
Kurdistan to independence," said Muhsin Khidir, 30,
who was taking a cigarette break near the
booksellers. "We don't want that kind of fighting
here. If civil war breaks out in Iraq, I'm sure we
will have the support of the international
community, and we'll just declare ourselves
independent."
Older Kurds, who came of age before Kurdistan became
an autonomous region in 1991, tend to be more
worried about the violence in central Iraq, and more
hopeful that their own political leaders can play a
mediating role. But they too wonder whether a
broader conflict might have accidental benefits.
"I don't like to get my rights in the tragedy of
others," said Asos Hardi, 43, a journalist who
helped found Hawlati, Kurdistan's main independent
newspaper. "But if it will happen and Iraq will
become a second Afghanistan, why should we continue
with them? It is a logical question."
Kurdistan had its own civil war in the 1990's, when
its two main political parties fought for control.
Many Kurds do not want to become involved in another
war.
They are also deeply resentful of Iraqi Arabs, who
carried out brutal attacks on Kurdish villages
during the reign of Saddam Hussein.
Evidence of that animosity can be found almost
anywhere. At the outdoor book market — which sits
under a vast mural of Sheik Mahmoud al-Hafeed, the
rebel leader who is considered the father of modern
Kurdistan — one of the most popular titles is a
paperback called "The Bloody History of the Arabs: A
Summary." On its cover was a lurid color
illustration of a hooded skeleton strangling a
beautiful young woman.
But separating from Iraq would be difficult, if not
impossible. Apart from any objections the Arabs
might raise, Turkey has at least 12 million Kurds
within its borders, and has made clear that it would
not tolerate an independent Kurdistan. Iran and
Syria have Kurdish populations, too, and would
probably also object.
At the book market, those facts prompted a brief
debate about which group was the Kurds' worst enemy.
"Who's the worst? It's clear that it's the Arabs,"
said Hiwa Muhammad, a 21-year-old English major.
"I disagree, I think the Turks are the worst,"
interjected Luqman Saleh, 32, a store clerk. "So
many Kurds were killed by the Turks."
"No, the main enemy of the Kurds is the Persians,"
said Jamil, a 50-year-old engineer. "I can prove it:
they are against our religion, because we are
Sunnis. And they are against our national identity
as Kurds."
For a brief moment last year, it seemed that the
friendless Kurds had found an ally in the Iraqi
Shiites. Both groups suffered atrocities under Mr.
Hussein, and after emerging from the January 2005
elections as the two largest blocs, they agreed to
form a governing coalition.
The amity did not last long. Iraq's Kurdish
president, Jalal Talabani, accused Ibrahim al-Jaafari,
the Shiite prime minister, of ignoring Kurdish
demands. Last month, Mr. Talabani was furious after
Mr. Jaafari went on a state visit to Turkey, the
Kurds' historic nemesis, without informing him.
Mr. Jaafari was soon being portrayed in Kurdish
newspapers as the latest in a long line of betrayers
of the Kurds. The Kurdish leadership sent a letter
to the Shiites saying they could not work with Mr.
Jaafari, and demanding that he be replaced.
Since then, there has been speculation here that the
Sunni Arabs might make better political allies than
the Shiites. But with government talks in a
stalemate and talk of a possible civil war in the
air, many Kurds would rather not take sides.
"It's clear that the civil war will be intensified,"
Mr. Ali said with a shrug. "The Shiites have come to
power, and the Sunnis won't accept it. But we have a
Kurdish proverb, 'If the fire is far from me, it's
not a problem.' "
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