JSPES, Vol. 37, No. 1 (Spring 2012)
pp. 3-37

Kurdish Islam and the Question of Kurdish Integration into the Iraqi State

Aram Rafaat

University of Adelaide

“Thou, God, must not allow the Kurds to unify; their unification would cause the destruction of the world" (Prophet Mohammad’s saying reported by the medieval Turkish historian Khuja Sadaddin.)

The author examines the role of religion in Kurdish national aspirations, with particular reference to the manner in which it affects the relationship between Kurds living in Iraq and attempts to integrate Iraqi Kurds into the Iraqi state.