Roundtable “The Kurds between a Rock and a Hard Place: Is There a Way Out?”

Date of publication: November 23, 2023

Prague Centre for Middle East Relations (PCMR) of CEVRO held a closed roundtable “The Kurds between a Rock and a Hard Place: Is There a Way Out?” Our distinguished guest was Ziryan Rojhilati, Director of Erbil-based think-tank Rudaw Research Center (RRC).

The event was be held in English under the Chatham House Rules.

The debate was moderated by Tomáš Kaválek, Director of PCMR.

The roundtable discussed the current position of the Kurds in the region. Kurds in Iraq are divided internally while facing both international and domestic pressures. Following the Kurdistan Workers’ Party attacks in Ankara, Turkey’s campaign against the organization intensified across the regional board. Iran pushes for disarming and relocating Iranian Kurdish opposition based in Iraqi Kurdistan. These developments occur against the background of regional dynamics including the Saudi-Iranian détente, the so-called Abraham Accords, as well as the recent escalation of Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Ziryan Rojhilati is Director of think-tank Rudaw Research Center (RRC) based in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). The RRC is affiliated with the Rudaw Media Network, one of the major media companies operating in the KRI. Ziryan is a political analyst focusing on the issues of Kurdish politics in Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria as well as internal politics and security of the said countries. Previously, he has worked in various media and local research outlets including as the Editor in Chief of Radio Nawa in 2009-13. In 1997-2005, he was active in Kurdish Iranian opposition politics. Ziryan obtained his degree at the Suleimani Polythechnic University and currently studies Political Science at the University of Kurdistan in Hewlêr.