Kurdish teachers strike, march on Baghdad for unpaid wages

Vol. 87/No. 46 - December 11, 2023

Over 58,000 Kurdish teachers in Sulaimaniyah province have been on strike for back wages for more than two months in the longest teachers strike in the history of Kurdistan, putting nearly a million students out of school. More than 1,000…


Book fair reflects class politics in Kurdistan and Iraq

600,000 turn out, interested in titles on politics, culture, history of revolutionary struggle
Vol. 87/No. 14 - April 10, 2023
Volunteer Joe Young, right, with visitors to Pathfinder booth at book fair in Kurdistan region of Iraq. Participants bought 1,200 books by communist and other revolutionary leaders.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region, Iraq — On March 16 participants in the 15th Erbil International Book Fair observed a moment of silence, joining people across Kurdistan in marking 35 years since the Saddam Hussein dictatorship attacked the town of Halabja with…


Socialist Workers Party author speaks on new title at book fair forum

Vol. 87/No. 14 - April 10, 2023
SWP leader Steve Clark signs copies of The Low Point of Labor Resistance is Behind Us, following March 11 presentation at Erbil International Book Fair in Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region, Iraq — Over 50 people attended a March 11 presentation by Steve Clark on The Low Point of Labor Resistance Is Behind Us: The Socialist Workers Party Looks Forward. Clark is editorial director of Pathfinder Press and…


Erbil book fair opens in Kurdistan Region in Iraq

Vol. 87/No. 12 - March 27, 2023

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region, Iraq — Since the 15th Erbil International Book Fair kicked off March 8, tens of thousands have come looking for books on a wide range of topics — including history, politics, science, technology and religion — as…


Book fair in Sulaymaniyah shows gains in Kurdish national struggle

Vol. 86/No. 46 - December 12, 2022
Pathfinder volunteer Jim White, center, at Sulaymaniyah book fair, Nov. 17-26. Developments in the region and world politics boosted interest in books on lessons of revolutionary struggles.

SULAYMANIYAH, Kurdistan Region, Iraq — The 10-day Sulaymaniyah International Book Fair ended Nov. 26, drawing tens of thousands of people eager to get their hands on books in Kurdish, English and Arabic. Busloads of students and schoolchildren walked up and…


Book fair marked by solidarity with Iranian protests

Vol. 86/No. 46 - December 12, 2022
Book fair marked by solidarity with Iranian protests

SULAYMANIYAH — While browsing at the Pathfinder booth at the book fair, student Nwa Abdullah described a Sept. 28 demonstration here, above, in solidarity with protests in Iran, shortly after the killing of Jina Amini. The demonstration was attacked by…


Book fair in Iraqi Kurdistan reflects regional struggles

Vol. 86/No. 45 - December 5, 2022
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SULAYMANIYAH, Kurdistan Region, Iraq — Since Nov. 17, thousands have flocked to the Sulaymaniyah International Book Fair, which is being held here for the fourth time. It features books on language, history, politics, science and religion, as well as novels,…


Turkish government moves to ban pro-Kurdish HDP

Vol. 85/No. 13 - April 5, 2021

The authoritarian government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey moved to ban the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), the nation’s third-largest and chief opposition party, March 18. The HDP was formed in 2012 to represent the fight for national rights of…


Protests across Kurdistan demand unpaid wages, jobs, services

Vol. 84/No. 51 - December 28, 2020
Public sector workers protest in Sulaymaniyah, demanding unpaid wages from Kurdistan Regional Government Dec. 11. Actions expanded across the region, fueled by lack of jobs and services.

Teachers and other public employees, fed up with working for months without being paid, protested demanding back wages Dec. 2 in the city of Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. When they tried to march again the next day,…


Workers, vendors in Kurdish Iraq fight for right to work

Vol. 84/No. 17 - May 4, 2020

Mechanics and vendors held protests in Erbil, above, and Duhok April 18 against a government lockdown across the Kurdistan region of Iraq. They called on the government to allow them to reopen their garages and shops after a month of…