The Fate of the Kurds

As the fourth-largest national group in the Middle East, the Kurds have become a major factor in the region's future stability. Large Kurdish populations in Iran, Iraq and Turkey are seeking more cultural and political autonomy. In doing so, they are intensifying a number of destabilizing pressures--breakaway ethnic movements, human rights, treatment of minorities, democracy and possibly separatism. Though they have a strong self-identity, the Kurds are not yet ethnically unified, separated as they are by language, customs, neo-feudal obligations and physical distance. However, these barriers are breaking down. The three states with large Kurdish populations are at a crossroads: they must embrace federalism, allowing more autonomy for the Kurds, or prepare for prolonged violence and turmoil.