Kurds have a better case for an independent country than the Palestinians

NY Times:

Does the Kurdish Independence Dream Have a Chance?


Iraq’s Kurds voted overwhelmingly for an independent state, but their territory lacks democratic institutions, and their troubled economy is dependent on hostile neighbors.
I keep wondering when we will ever see stories about the Turkish, Iranian, and Iraqi occupation of Kurdish land.  Unlike the Palestinians, the Kurds have a thousands of years history in this land.  It is also somewhat strange to see a story about a lack of Democrat institutions when the opponents don't have much of one either, and the Kurds just voted by more than 90 percent for independence.

It should also be noted that the Kurds were more effective than any of the main three opponents in fighting the ISIS genocidal threat to the region.  Unlike the Palestinians, the Kurds are not squatters in a country with thousands of years of history like Israel.

Does their dream of independence have a chance?  That largely depends on whether they can get support from other players in the region including the US.  But a Kurdish state would also be in the strategic interests of the Sunni Arab states in the region in blocking the Iranian "Shia Crescent."  It would also be in Israel's interests.

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