Peshmerga

The Peshmerga (Template:Langx)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> are the internal security forces of Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, regional governments are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the region such as police, security forces, and guards of the region".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Other Kurdish security agencies include the Zêrevanî (gendarmerie), Asayish (security and counterterrorism service), and the Parastin û Zanyarî (intelligence agency). The Peshmerga's history dates back to the 18th century, when they began as a tribal paramilitary border guard under the Ottoman Turks and the Safavid Kurds. By the 19th century, they had evolved into a disciplined and well-trained guerrilla force.<ref name="Lortz2015">Template:Cite thesis</ref>

Formally, the Peshmerga are under the command of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs of the Kurdistan Regional Government. In practice, however, the Peshmerga's structure is largely divided and controlled separately by the two Iraqi Kurdish political parties: the Democratic Party of Kurdistan and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. Though unifying and integrating the Peshmerga has been on the Kurdistan Region's public agenda since 1992, the individual forces remain divided due to factionalism, which has proved to be a major stumbling block.<ref name="CMEC">Template:Cite journal</ref>

Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the Peshmerga played a key role in helping the United States on the mission to capture deposed Iraqi president Saddam Hussein.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2004, they captured Saudi-born Pakistani terrorist Hassan Ghul, who was operating for al-Qaeda in Iraq. Ghul was turned over to American intelligence officers shortly afterwards, and revealed the identity of several key al-Qaeda figures during his interrogation, which eventually led to the killing of Osama bin Laden in a covert American military operation in Pakistan in 2011.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Valentine, Peshmerga: Those who Face Death, 2018, chapter five.</ref> One year later, in 2012, Ghul was assassinated by an American drone strike in northwestern Pakistan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Etymology

The word "Peshmerga" can be translated to "to stand in front of death",<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>From the Kurdish {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} ({{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) "before" and {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} "death".</ref> and Valentine states it was first used by Qazi Muhammad in the short-lived Mahabad Republic (1946–47).<ref>Valentine, Those Who Face Death, KDP, 2018.</ref> The word is understandable to Persian speakers.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Because, the name was also used to refer to an elite unit within the Sassanid Empire's military, specifically a sub-unit of the Pushtigban, called the Gyan-avspar.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> These warriors were renowned for their unwavering loyalty and bravery, often serving as the last line of defense for the Sassanid kings.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

History

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

The Kurdish warrior tradition of rebellion has existed for thousands of years along with aspirations for independence, and early Kurdish warriors fought against the various Persian empires, the Ottoman Empire and the British Empire.<ref name="Lortz2015" /><ref>S. R. Valentine, Peshmerga: Those Who Face Death, KDP, 2018, see the introduction and chapter one.</ref>

Historically the Peshmerga existed only as guerrilla organizations, but under the self-declared Republic of Mahabad (1946–1947), the Peshmerga led by Mustafa Barzani became the official army of the republic.<ref name="first mahabad source">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="ma barzani" /> After the fall of the republic and the execution of head of state Qazi Muhammad, Peshmerga forces reemerged as guerrilla organizations that would go on to fight the Iranian and Iraqi governments for the remainder of the century.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In Iraq, most of these Peshmerga were led by Mustafa Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party.<ref name="ma barzani">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1975 the Peshmerga were defeated in the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War. Jalal Talabani, a leading member of the KDP, left the same year to revitalize the resistance and founded the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. This event created the baseline for the political discontent between the KDP and PUK that divides Peshmerga forces and much of Kurdish society in Kurdistan.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

After Mustafa Barzani's death in 1979, his son Masoud Barzani took his position.<ref name="ma barzani" /> As tension increased between KDP and PUK, most Peshmerga fought to keep a region under their own party's control while also fighting off Iraqi Army incursions. Following the First Persian Gulf War, Iraqi Kurdistan saw the Kurdish Civil War between the two major parties, the KDP and the PUK, and Peshmerga forces were used to fight each other.<ref>S. R. Valentine, Peshmerga: Those Who Face Death, KDP, 2018, chapter six.</ref> The civil war officially ended in September 1998 when Barzani and Talabani signed the Washington Agreement establishing a formal peace treaty.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the agreement, the parties agreed to share revenue and power, deny the use of northern Iraq to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), and not allow Iraqi troops into the Kurdish regions. By then, around 5,000 had been killed on both sides, and many more had been evicted for being on the wrong side.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the years after, tension remained high, but both parties moved towards each other, and in 2003 they both took part in the overthrowing of the Baathist regime as part of the Iraq War. Unlike other militia forces, the Peshmerga were never prohibited by Iraqi law.<ref name=WhoPeshmerga>Profile: Who are the Peshmerga? BBC News. Retrieved 19 December 2014.</ref>

File:Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga fighter in the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in 2003.jpg

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighter (KDP) in 2003.

In 2014, the Peshmerga withdrew from the Nineveh Plains, which was said by the locals as being a contributing factor of the quick Islamic State victory in the invasion, and the widespread massacre of Yazidis, who were rendered defenseless.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Structure and capabilities

File:Pershmega near Syria - June 23, 2014.jpg

Peshmerga special unit near the Syrian border on June 23, 2014.

The Peshmerga are mostly divided among forces loyal to the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and those loyal to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK),<ref name="Helfont2017">Template:Cite journal</ref> while other, minor Kurdish parties such as the Kurdistan Socialist Democratic Party also have their own small Peshmerga units.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Islamic Movement of Kurdistan also had its own Peshmerga unit, which became an official Peshmerga branch during the Iran-Iraq war, and was disarmed in 2003.<ref>Kurdish Islamists in Iraq from the Muslim Brotherhood to the So-Called Islamic State: Continuity or Departure?, Mohammed Shareef, 2015, pp. 25, Template:ISBN</ref> The KDP and PUK do not disclose information about the composition of their forces with government or media.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> Thus there is no reliable number of how many Peshmerga fighters exist.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> Media outlets have speculated that there are between 150,000 and 200,000 Peshmerga, but this number is highly disputed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Peshmerga have divided Kurdistan Region into a KDP-governed "yellow" zone covering Dohuk Governorate and Erbil Governorate and a PUK-governed "green" zone covering Sulaymaniyah Governorate and Halabja Governorate.<ref>Chapman, Dennis. Security Forces of Kurdistan Regional Government, US Army War College. 2009, p. 3.</ref><ref name="Helfont2017" /><ref name="CMEC" /> Each zone has its own branch of Peshmerga with their own governing institutions that do not coordinate with the other branch.<ref name="CMEC" /><ref>S. R. Valentine, Peshmerga: Those Who Face Death, KDP, 2018, chapter 9.</ref>

As a result of the split nature of the Peshmerga forces, there is no central command center in charge of the entire force, and Peshmerga units instead follow separate military hierarchies depending on political allegiance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Multiple unification and depoliticizing efforts of the Peshmerga have been made since 1992. But so far all deadlines have been missed,<ref name="CMEC" /> reforms have been watered down,<ref name="Helfont2017" /> and most of the Peshmerga are still under the influence of the KDP and the PUK, who also maintain their separate Peshmerga forces. Following the events of the Iraqi Civil War in 2014, the United States and several Europe nations pressured the PUK and KDP to set up mixed brigades of Peshmerga as a condition for aid and funding. The PUK and KDP united 12 to 14 brigades under the Regional Guard Brigades, which were then placed under the command of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> However, officers continue to report to and take orders from their party leaders who also control the deployment of forces loyal to them and appoint front-line and sector commanders.<ref name="CMEC" />

Both the KDP and the PUK rely heavily on irregulars in times of conflict to increase their ranks.<ref name="Howard2002">Template:Cite news</ref> However, both maintain several professional military brigades. The following units have been identified within the Peshmerga force:

Force	Estimated size	Commander	Party affiliation
Regional Guard Brigades<ref name="Helfont2017" /><ref name="CMEC" />	40,000–43,000	Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs	Supposedly apolitical
Hezekani Kosrat Rasul<ref name="CMEC" />	2,000–3,000	Kosrat Rasul Ali	PUK
Anti-terror force<ref name="CMEC" />	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref> || Lahur Shekh Jangi || PUK
Presidential Peshmerga brigades<ref name="CMEC" />	unknown	Hero Ibrahim Ahmed	PUK
70 Unit<ref name="CMEC" /><ref name="Helfont2017" />	60,000	Sheikh Jaafar Sheikh Mustafa	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Emergency Forces<ref name="CMEC" />	3,000<ref name="kurdistanskyscrapers.com"/>	unknown	PUK
PUK Asayish (security) force	unknown	unknown	PUK
Presidential Guard (Iraqi Kurdistan )<ref name="CMEC" />	unknown	Nechirvan Barzani	KDP
80 Unit<ref name="CMEC" /><ref name="Helfont2017" />	70,000–90,000	Najat Ali Salih	KDP. Supposedly becoming incorporated into MPA<ref name="reform" />
Zerevani<ref name="CMEC" />	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Lortz2015"/> || Masoud Barzani || KDP
Template:Flagicon image Êzîdxan Protection Force<ref name=orders>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref> || 7,000<ref>IS-Terror in Shingal: Wer kämpft gegen wen? Ein Überblick, Ezidi Press. 12 October 2014</ref>–8,000<ref>With the Islamic State gone from Sinjar, Kurdish groups battle for control, Al-Monitor. 27 March 2016</ref> || Haydar Shesho|| Yazidi Democratic Party, Incorporated into Peshmerga Ministry<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Template:Flagicon image Nineveh Plain Guard Forces or "Christian Peshmerga"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref> || 1,500 || unknown || Chaldean Syriac Assyrian Popular Council
KDP Asayish (security) force	unknown	Barzan Qassab	KDP

Due to limited funding and the vast size of the Peshmerga forces, the KRG planned to downsize its forces from large numbers of low-quality forces to a smaller but much more effective and well-trained force.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Consequently, in 2009, the KRG and Baghdad engaged in discussions about incorporating parts of the Peshmerga forces into the Iraqi Army in what would be the 15th and 16th Iraqi Army divisions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Chapman, Dennis. Security Forces of Kurdistan Regional Government, US Army War College. 2009, p. 112.</ref> However, after increasing tension between Erbil and Baghdad regarding the disputed areas, the transfer was largely put on hold. Some Peshmerga were already transferred but reportedly deserted again, and there are allegations that former Peshmerga forces remained loyal to the KRG rather than their Iraqi chain of command; regardless, thousands of members of the 80 Unit of KDP and the 70 Unit of PUK are based in Baghdad, and they have good cooperation with other Iraqi forces in Baghdad.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Peshmerga forces are secular with a Muslim majority and Assyrian and Yazidi units.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

File:Task Force Talon advises, assists Ministry of Peshmerga July 28, 2016.jpg

Peshmerga soldiers stand in formation during the Modern Brigade Course graduation ceremony.

Peshmerga forces largely rely on old arms captured from battles. The Peshmerga captured stockpiles of weapons during the 1991 Iraqi uprisings.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Several stockpiles of weapons were captured from the old Iraqi Army during the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, in which Peshmerga forces were active. Following the retreat of the new Iraqi Army during the June 2014 Islamic State offensive, Peshmerga forces reportedly again managed to get hold of weapons left behind by the Army.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Since August 2014, Peshmerga forces have also captured weapons from the Islamic State.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2015, for the first time, Peshmerga soldiers received urban warfare and military intelligence training from foreign trainers, the Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The Peshmerga arsenal is limited and confined by restrictions because the Kurdish Region has to purchase arms through the Iraqi government. Due to disputes between the KRG and the Iraqi government, arms flows from Baghdad to Kurdistan Region have been almost nonexistent, as Baghdad fears Kurdish aspirations for independence.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Helfont2017" /> After the Islamic State offensive of August 2014, multiple governments armed the Peshmerga with light arms, night goggles, and ammunition.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, Kurdish officials and Peshmerga stressed that they were not receiving enough and Baghdad was blocking arms from reaching the KRG, emphasizing the need for weapons to be sent directly and not through Baghdad.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Despite this, the United States has maintained that the government of Iraq is responsible for the security of Iraqi Kurdistan and that Baghdad must approve all military aid.<ref name="Helfont2017" />

The Peshmerga lack a proper medical corps and communication units.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> This became apparent during the Islamic State offensive in 2014 where the Peshmerga found itself lacking ambulances and frontline field hospitals, forcing wounded fighters to walk back to safety.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> There is also a lack of communication tools, as Peshmerga commanders are forced to use civilian cellphones to communicate with each other.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> Under the guidance of the US-led coalition the Peshmerga started to standardize its weapons systems, replacing Soviet-era weapons with NATO firearms.<ref name="Helfont2017" />

Inventory

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}

Issues

Peshmerga has been accused of corruption, partisanship, nepotism and fraud.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Peshmerga is accused of listing "ghost employees" who do not exist or do not show up for work but receive a salary. Those setting up such a scam split the salary of these employees.<ref name="Helfont2017" />

In addition the KDP and PUK have used the Peshmerga to exert a monopoly on the use of force within their zones.<ref name="Helfont2017" /> In 2011 KDP Peshmerga fired on anti-government protesters in Sulaymaniyah, and the PUK later used its own security forces to break up these protests,<ref name="CMEC" /> leading to criticism from all of the opposition parties in the parliament. In 2014 the KDP used its Peshmerga to stop ministers from the Gorran Movement to enter Erbil and attend parliament.<ref name="Helfont2017" />

Outside of Kurdistan Region the Peshmerga has been criticized for using force to exert control of local Arab, Yazidi and Assyrian communities, particularly after taking control of areas officially outside of Kurdistan Region during the Iraqi Civil War.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Role of women

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Women have played a significant role in the Peshmerga since its foundation. The Kurdish Zand tribe was known for allowing women in military roles.<ref name="Lortz2015" /> During the Iraqi–Kurdish conflict the majority of women served within the Peshmerga in supporting roles such as building camps, taking care of the wounded, and carrying munitions and messages.<ref name="Howard2002" /> Several women brigades served on the front lines. Margaret George Malik<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> was an iconic<ref name="Vindheim2016">Template:Cite book</ref> Assyrian guerilla fighter who was given a leading position in important battles such as the Battle of Zawita Valley.<ref name="Sankey2018">Template:Cite book</ref> The PUK started recruiting women during the Kurdish Civil War. Women were given a 45-day basic training that included parade drills and basic marksmanship with various rifles, mortars, and RPGs.<ref name="Lortz2015" />

In the months leading up to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, the United States launched Operation Viking Hammer which dealt a huge blow to Islamic terrorist groups in Iraqi Kurdistan and uncovered a chemical weapons facility.<ref>Plan of Attack, Bob Woodward, Simon and Schuster, 2004.</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Chalk, Peter 2012">Chalk, Peter, Encyclopedia of Terrorism Volume 1, 2012, ABC-CLIO</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The PUK later confirmed that female Kurdish fighters had participated in the operation.<ref name="Howard2002" />

File:Peshmerga & YPG.jpg

People's Defense Units' (YPG) woman volunteer with Peshmerga soldier

The modern Peshmerga is almost entirely made up of men, while having at least 600 women in their ranks.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref> In the KDP, these Peshmerga women have been refused access to the frontline and are mostly used in logistics and management positions,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> but PUK Peshmerga women are deployed in the front lines and are actively engaged in combat.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Lortz2015" />

See also

• List of armed groups in the War in Iraq (2013–2017)
• Kurdish rebellion of 1983 and Al-Anfal campaign
• Sinjar massacre and Genocide of Yazidis by ISIL
• Template:Annotated link
• Template:Annotated link
• Template:Annotated link
• Template:Annotated link
• Template:Annotated link
• Template:Annotated link
• Moshe Barazani – Kurdish Zionist militant, in the Lehi.

Further reading

• Simon Ross Valentine, Peshmerga: Those Who Face Death: The Kurdish Army, its History, Development, and the Fight against ISIS, Kindle Direct Publishing, 2018, 300pp. Template:ISBN?
• Chapman, Dennis P., Lieutenant Colonel USA, Security Forces of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Mohammed Najat, Costa Mesa, California: Mazda Publishers, 2011. {{#if:0026-3141|Template:Catalog lookup link{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}{{#if:Template:Trim|{{#ifeq:Template:Yesno-no|yes|Template:Main other|{{#invoke:check isxn|check_issn|Template:Trim|error=Template:Error-smallTemplate:Main other}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}|Template:Error-small}} Reviewed by Michael M. Gunter in Middle East Affairs, Vol. 65, No. 3, Summer 2011.

External links

• Official MPA site at Kurdish Regional Government site Template:Webarchive