20 Facts About Kurdistan Region

The Kurdistan Region largely escaped the privations of the last years of Saddam Hussein's rule and the chaos that followed his ousting in 2003, and built a parliamentary democracy with a growing economy.

In 1983, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Region agreed to cooperate with Baghdad, but the Kurdistan Region Democratic Party remained opposed.

America and Kurdistan Region jointly rooted out the Islamist Ansar al-Islam group in Halabja area as Kurdistan Region hosted thousands of soldiers.

In 2009, Kurdistan Region saw the birth of a new major party, the Gorran Movement, which was founded because of tensions in PUK and would subsequently weaken the party profoundly.

However, Kurdistan Region did not compromise on their stance regarding financial independence from Baghdad.

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Climate of the Kurdistan Region is semi-arid continental; hot and dry in summer, and cold and wet in winter.

Kurdistan Region is a democratic parliamentary republic and has a presidential system wherein the President is elected by Parliament for a four-year term.

The Kurdistan Region Parliament has 111 seats and are held every fifth year.

Kurdistan Region is divided into four governorates: the governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, and Halabja.

Kurdistan Region has the lowest poverty rates in Iraq and the stronger economy of the Kurdistan Region attracted around 20, 000 workers from other parts of Iraq between 2003 and 2005.

In November 2011, Exxon challenged the Iraqi central government's authority with the signing of oil and gas contracts for exploration rights to six parcels of land in Kurdistan Region, including one contract in the disputed territories, just east of the Kirkuk mega-field.

Notable companies active in Kurdistan Region include Exxon, TotalEnergies, Chevron, Talisman Energy, DNO, MOL Group, Genel Energy, Hunt Oil, Gulf Keystone Petroleum, and Marathon Oil.

Iraqi Kurdistan Region has been investing in the growth of its human capital in general.

In 2010 Human Rights Watch reported that journalists in the Kurdistan Region who criticize the regional government have faced substantial violence, threats, and lawsuits, and some have fled the country.

In 2009 Human Rights Watch found that some health providers in Iraqi Kurdistan Region had been involved in both performing and promoting misinformation about the practice of female genital mutilation.

In 2010, it was reported that passing of a new law in Iraqi Kurdistan Region, guaranteeing “gender equality”, has deeply outraged some local religious community, including the minister of endowments and religious affairs and prominent imams, who interpreted the phrase as "legitimizing homosexuality in Kurdistan Region".

Iraqi Kurdistan Region has two border gates with Iran, the Haji Omaran border gate and the Bashmeg border gate near the city of Sulaymaniyah.

Iraqi Kurdistan Region has a border gate with Syria known as the Faysh Khabur border gate.

Iraqi Kurdistan Region has opened its doors to the world by opening two international airports.

Kurdistan Region is a multilingual region with several languages and dialects.