Islamic Movement of Kurdistan
Encyclopedia
The Islamic Movement of Kurdistan (or Kurdistan Islamic Movement) is an Islamist group founded in 1979 by Shaykh Uthman Abd-Aziz and several other Sunni mullahs who were all part of the non-political "Union of Religious Scholars" (Yaketi Mamostayani Ayni Islami). The party's main support comes from in and around that town of Halabjah. In the region controlled by the Islamic Movement in Kurdistan, the party established its own infrastructure but did not seek to apply Sharia law. Sheikh Uthman Abd al-Aziz was appointed as a mufti (religious judge) by the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan.
In the 1992 Iraqi Kurdistan
elections the party received 5.1% of the vote, the third largest after the PUK
and KDP. In 1993 the PUK ceded control of territory around Halabja, Tawella and Panjwin to the party after heavy fighting, and the party controlled Halabja from 1998 to 2000.
In 1998 al-Aziz moved to Irbil with a number of followers. After al-Aziz's death in 1999 the leadership of the party passed to his brother Mullah Ali Abd al-Aziz Halabji, who has his office in Halabjah.
Armed hostilities, which resulted in deaths were reported between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and Islamic Groups, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Workers Party
, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party. The heaviest fighting began in September 2001, when a newly created Islamist group, the Ansar al-Islam
, seized control of some villages near the Iranian border and attempted to institute a strictly Islamist theocratic regime.
According to press and opposition reporting, the Ansar al-Islam attacked Patriotic Union of Kurdistan fighters near Halabjah, killing dozens of persons. Intermittent fighting between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and the Ansar al-Islam, and other Islamic groups continued until late November, when an agreement between those involved and the Iranian Government imposed a cease-fire.
Islamic Movement of Kurdistan holds (2005) two ministerial posts in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan-dominated government. This co-operation appears to be principally a temporary coalition dictated by pragmatic considerations. Islamic Movement is receiving aid from Iran
and is also said to receive money from other Islamic countries. Islamic Movement of Kurdistan has offices in various towns in Northern Iraq, including Suleimaniyya and Irbil.
In the 1992 Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan or Kurdistan Region is an autonomous region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the south. The regional capital is Arbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr...
elections the party received 5.1% of the vote, the third largest after the PUK
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan
The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan is a Kurdish political party in Iraqi Kurdistan. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan was founded on June 1, 1975, by coordinations between Jalal Talabani and Nawshirwan Mustafa...
and KDP. In 1993 the PUK ceded control of territory around Halabja, Tawella and Panjwin to the party after heavy fighting, and the party controlled Halabja from 1998 to 2000.
In 1998 al-Aziz moved to Irbil with a number of followers. After al-Aziz's death in 1999 the leadership of the party passed to his brother Mullah Ali Abd al-Aziz Halabji, who has his office in Halabjah.
Armed hostilities, which resulted in deaths were reported between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and Islamic Groups, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Workers Party
Kurdistan Workers Party
The Kurdistan Workers' Party , commonly known as PKK, also known as KGK and formerly known as KADEK or KONGRA-GEL , is a Kurdish organization which has since 1984 been fighting an armed struggle against the Turkish state for an autonomous Kurdistan and greater cultural and political rights...
, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party. The heaviest fighting began in September 2001, when a newly created Islamist group, the Ansar al-Islam
Ansar al-Islam
Ansar al-Islam is a Sunni Islamist group of Iraqis, promoting a radical interpretation of Islam, close to the official Saudi ideology of Wahhabism with strict application of Sharia. The group was formed in the northern provinces of Iraq near the Iranian border, and previously had established...
, seized control of some villages near the Iranian border and attempted to institute a strictly Islamist theocratic regime.
According to press and opposition reporting, the Ansar al-Islam attacked Patriotic Union of Kurdistan fighters near Halabjah, killing dozens of persons. Intermittent fighting between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and the Ansar al-Islam, and other Islamic groups continued until late November, when an agreement between those involved and the Iranian Government imposed a cease-fire.
Islamic Movement of Kurdistan holds (2005) two ministerial posts in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan-dominated government. This co-operation appears to be principally a temporary coalition dictated by pragmatic considerations. Islamic Movement is receiving aid from Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
and is also said to receive money from other Islamic countries. Islamic Movement of Kurdistan has offices in various towns in Northern Iraq, including Suleimaniyya and Irbil.