On the way to work this morning at around 4 am I heard a leader of the PUK (Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (Hi Sam!)) giving an interview to a BBC pool reporter on NPR. He was discussing the recent influx of Mujahideen into Mosul and the effect it has had on the city and it's local defenders.

     The effect? Namely running away in droves. The police (who were already known to be riddled with Muj supporters) either turned tail and ran or turned coat and stayed. The Iraqi National Guard fared little better.

     Upon gaining such easy access to the city the Mujs turned their attentions toward the offices and outpost of the PUK and PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party (communists)) The Mujs found that these were much harder targets and had little sucess against any PUK or PKK holdings. The BBC interviewer asked why the Peshmerga (PUK (rough translation "Ready to Die")) had not engaged in a counter offensive and driven off or killed the Mujs? The man's answer was that the Iraqi Interim Government (IIG) and the US had asked the PUK to stand down from combat operations as they were indistinguishable from the enemy because they were largely composed of irregulars.

     While this may be partly true another large part of the governments reluctance to utilize the PKK (which effectively pacified the north within 2 days after we crossed the Kuwaiti border) is that the US and the IIG have been very wary of promoting the idea that there is an independant Kurdish state. Fuck this, the fact of the matter is that Northern Iraq is going to default to being Kurdistan. Get used to it. The only thing in some doubt is whether it will be part of a larger federation of Iraqi provinces or a totally seperate entity. This has massive repercussion for Turkey, Syria, and Iran as much of their bordering region with Iraq are overwhlmingly Kurd. Should Kurdistan stand up on it's own withint the borders of Iraq it is simply a matter of time before a few of these 3 surrounding nations face the loss of bits of territory as well. The Kurds I have met are fiercely patriotic and they don't fuck around. If Jalal Talabani decides that the Peshmerga are going to take a chunk out of Turkey's ass then Turkey better find a good antiseptic and a large ass-bandage.

     As you probably inferred from the title of this article I don't give two shits what Turkey (bet you wish you had let us use Incirlik now huh?), Syria, or The Mad Mullahs think about it. If anyone has demonstrated an ability and a right to self governance in the Middle East it is the Kurds. Mainly Muslim they do not engage in the self-destructive fuckery of the Paleswinians nor do they make exorbitant demands on the USA (a close ally). These folks just want to stand on their own two feet and provide a home for their people. I say their conduct has given them a pass to do so. What say you?