Gali Ali Beg Waterfall in the Iraq Kurdistan Region

Postcard

The Kurdistan Region is an autonomous region in federal Iraq. It borders Syria to the west, Iran to the east, and Turkey to the north.

The three northern provinces of Iraq blossomed into a quasi-independent state in the 21 years since the U.S. placed a protective umbrella - the 'no-fly zone' - over the region to stop a genocidal anti-Kurdish campaign waged by Saddam Hussein.  The area is Administered by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

Turkey, Iran and Syria - all of which have sizeable Kurdish minorities they do not want to become autonomous - are viewing the KRG's progress with considerable concern. They fear full independence for Iraqi Kurdistan would set off a chain reaction in the region.

Erbil is a rich agricultural region and boasts some of the most ancient tourism sites in Iraq, along with beautiful mountains and waterfalls, like the Guli Ali Beg.