Peshmerga
The Peshmerga are the internal security forces of the Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, regional governments are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the region such as police, security forces, and guards of the region." Other Kurdish security institutions include the Zêrevanî, Asayish, Parastin u Zanyarî and the region's Kurdish police force. The Peshmerga's history dates back to the 19th century, when they began as a tribal paramilitary border guard under the Ottoman Turks and the Safavid Iranians. By the 20th century, they had evolved into a disciplined and well-trained guerrilla force, and were institutionalized in the 21st century under the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Formally, the Peshmerga are under the command of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs of the KRG. In practice, however, the Peshmerga's structure is largely divided and controlled separately by the two Iraqi Kurdish political parties: the Democratic Party of Kurdistan and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. Unifying and integrating the Peshmerga under the MoPA has been on the Kurdistan Region's public agenda since 1992, with significant progress under a 2022 U.S.-KRG Memorandum of Understanding aiming for full unification by 2026, though challenges like partisanship and external threats persist.
Besides being the official name for the KRG's internal security forces, historically the word Peshmerga has also been used for a variety of Kurdish militias and armed groups, especially in Iranian Kurdistan. A few examples are the Peshmerga of the KDPI, PAK and Komala.
Etymology
The word "Peshmerga" can be translated to "to stand in front of death", and Valentine states it was first used by Qazi Muhammad in the short-lived Mahabad Republic. The word is understandable to Persian speakers. Because, the name was also used to refer to an elite unit within the Sassanid Empire's military, specifically a sub-unit of the Pushtigban, called the Gyan-avspar. These warriors were renowned for their unwavering loyalty and bravery, often serving as the last line of defense for the Sassanid kings.History
The Kurdish warrior tradition of rebellion has existed for thousands of years along with aspirations for independence. Early Kurdish warriors fought with and against the various Persian empires, the Ottoman Empire and the British Empire.Early Kurdish revolts
The Kurdish revolts of the early 20th century, such as the Sheikh Said rebellion, the rebellion of Xoybûn, and the uprisings led by Sheikh Mahmoud Barzanji, played an important role in the development of the modern Peshmerga. These events provided early experience in guerrilla and non-conventional warfare against state authorities and contributed to the spread of Kurdish nationalism among Kurdish fighters. They also strengthened the Barzani tribe, from which key leaders like Ahmed Barzani and Mustafa Barzani emerged.Building on the military experience gained during these uprisings, Mustafa Barzani later organized Kurdish forces in order to liberate Kurdistan. In 1943, he led approximately 2,000 Kurdish fighters in an uprising against the Iraqi Army and British forces, an event often regarded as a precursor to the modern Peshmerga forces that would later emerge, particularly during the period of the Republic of Mahabad.
Mahabad Republic
During the brief existence of the self-declared Republic of Mahabad, a contingent led by Mustafa Barzani served as its official military force after Barzani crossed the Iraq–Iran border to support the establishment of the Kurdish state in Iranian Kurdistan.According to Kurdish lore, the leaders of Mahabad gathered to choose a name for their army. As the story goes, they struggled to find a suitable word for 'soldier.' A server, overhearing their discussion, suggested peshmerga, a slang term from his nearby village. The name was adopted, and the force was formally named the Peshmerga. Furthermore, under president Qazi Muhammad’s orders, a committee of “hand-picked litterateurs and writers” also developed distinct Kurdish military terminology to define ranks and positions.
The relative of Simko Shikak, Amr Khan Shikak, along with the tribal leader of Baneh, Hama Rashid, Khan Banei, and Zero Beg Herki, were appointed as Marshals of the Peshmerga army by the Minister of War, Mohammed Hossein Saif Qazi. Due to his extensive warfare experience Mustafa Barzani was appointed as Marshal and chief of staff of the army. Officers maintained a professional appearance through their Soviet-style uniforms, further advised and organized by the Soviet military officer Captain Salahaddin Kazimov. The Soviets continued their influence by sending at least 60 Kurdish officers to Soviet Azerbaijan for additional military training. The Mahabad army consisted of about 70 officers, 40 non-commissioned officers, and 1,200 privates. As one of the senior leaders, Mustafa Barzani was responsible for appointing officers within the ranks.
In order to protect the republic's sovereignty, the Peshmerga engaged in their first battle at Qahrawa, near the town of Saqqez. They ambushed an Iranian garrison, killing 21 soldiers, wounding 17, and capturing 40. By mid-May 1946 Kurdish forces numbered approximately 12,750 Peshmerga, but most Kurdish offensives were limited to minor skirmishes.
After the withdrawal of Soviet support and the subsequent collapse of the republic, including the execution of its head of state, Qazi Muhammad, most Peshmerga forces, among them Barzani's force, retreated to Iraqi Kurdistan, where they re-emerged as guerrillas that continued to fight the Iranian and Iraqi governments throughout the remainder of the 20th century.
Iraqi Kurdistan
In Iraq, most of these Peshmerga fighters continued to be led by Mustafa Barzani and his newly established Kurdistan Democratic Party. The first major war fought by the Peshmerga in Iraqi Kurdistan was the First Iraqi–Kurdish War, lasting from 1961 until 1970, in which Barzani and his forces fought for independence. The war resulted in the signing of the Iraqi–Kurdish Autonomy Agreement. Kurdish autonomy had failed to be implemented by 1974, which led to the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War in 1975. Jalal Talabani, a leading member of the KDP, left the same year to revitalize the resistance and founded the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. This event created the baseline for the political discontent between the KDP and PUK that divides Peshmerga forces and much of Kurdish society to this day.After Mustafa Barzani's death in 1979, his son Masoud Barzani took over his position. As tension increased between the KDP and PUK, most Peshmerga forces fought to keep Iraqi Kurdistan under their own party's control, whilst also fighting off the Iraqi Army's incursions. Following the First Gulf War and the 1991 uprisings, and subsequent official autonomy for the Kurdistan Region, the Kurdish Civil War broke out, a conflict between the rivaling KDP and PUK parties, in which Peshmerga forces were used to fight against each other. The civil war officially ended in September 1998 when Barzani and Talabani signed the Washington Agreement establishing a formal peace treaty. In the agreement, the parties agreed to share oil revenue and power, deny the use of Iraqi Kurdistan to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, and to not allow Iraqi troops into the Kurdish regions. By then, around 5,000 Peshmerga and civilians had been killed on both sides, and many more had been evicted for being on the "wrong side".
2003 invasion of Iraq
In the years after, tensions remained high, but both parties came closer to each other, and in 2003 both of them, jointly took part in the overthrowing of the Baathist regime as part of the Iraq War and the broader Global War on Terror. The CIA and other US special forces, who arrived in Iraq in early 2002, conducted unconventinal warfare operations with the Peshmerga against Ansal al-Islam terrorists and organized the Peshmerga to form a 'northern Front' against Saddam Hussein's troops. As the U.S. bombing campaign and subsequent invasion of Iraq began, Peshmerga forces, operating alongside U.S. Special Forces, advanced beyond the Kurdistan Region and took control of large areas that were widely regarded as Kurdish but had previously been outside Kurdish control. These areas included Sinjar, Tuz Khurmatu, Khanaqin, and Kirkuk. The Peshmerga played a key role in helping the United States on the mission to capture Iraqi president Saddam Hussein.After the overthrowing, the Peshmerga were politically recognized and obtained a special legal position. This improvement came from the Coalition Provisional Authority with issuing orders that recognized the Peshmerga and exempted them from disbandment. However, the decision was preceded by disagreements between Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani and the U.S. Administrator of Iraq, Paul Bremer, who regarded the continued existence of the Peshmerga as a "red line" in the formation of the new Iraqi state. Barzani rejected calls for disbandment, reportedly telling Bremer to "be a man and come to Kurdistan to disband Peshmerga." Bremer subsequently abandoned his efforts to disband the Peshmerga. In August 2003, parts of the Peshmerga were assigned to border security and oil pipeline protection, while others trained with coalition troops. Peshmerga units collaborated closely with U.S. forces on patrols, interrogations, and security missions. At one point, the Peshmerga made up 30% of the new Iraqi Army.
In 2004, CTG Kurdistan, an elite special forces unit within the Peshmerga, captured Saudi-born Pakistani terrorist Hassan Ghul, who was operating for al-Qaeda in Iraq. Ghul was turned over to American intelligence officers shortly afterwards, which eventually led to the killing of Osama bin Laden in a covert American military operation in Pakistan in 2011.