The Militant Kurds: A Dual Strategy for Freedom

Since 1984, an estimated 40,000 civilians, soldiers, security personnel, and Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) combatants have died as a result of the Kurdish conflict in Turkey. Yet, as a consequence of the Iraq war in 2003, interactions between the United States, Turkey, and the Kurdish minority in Turkey and the KRG (Kurdish Regional Government) changed significantly. Could a resolution be in sight?

The Militant Kurds: A Dual Strategy for Freedom explores the complexity of the 30-year guerrilla war of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) against the Turkish Republic, identifying longstanding obstacles to peace and probing the new dynamics that may lead to an end to the conflict. In doing so, the book provides fascinating insights into Turkey's national ethos, its dominant military culture, and civil society's struggle for increased democratization.

The Militant Kurds offers an extensive analysis of the precarious position of the Kurdish minority, beginning with the establishment of the modern Turkish republic in 1923. Examining current political realities in Turkey, the book investigates the role of Islam and ethnicity, analyzes the rise of the PKK, discusses Turkish military culture, and explains the international dimensions of the Kurdish conflict. Comparative historical, political, and socioeconomic examples contextualize the long struggle for Kurdish self-determination. Each chapter offers an analysis of the underlying dynamics of the conflict and provides up-to-date explanations.

Vera Eccarius-Kelly, PhD, is associate professor of comparative politics at Siena College in Loudonville, NY.