Background
Autonomy in Iraqi Kurdistan was originally established in 1970 as the Kurdish Autonomous Region following the agreement of an Autonomy Accord between the government of Iraq and leaders of the Iraqi Kurdish community. A Legislative Assembly was established in the city of Arbil with theoretical authority over the Kurdish-populated governorates of Erbil, Dahuk and As Sulaymaniyah. As various battles between separatist Kurds and Iraqi governments forces continued until the 1991 uprisings in Iraq, the safety of Kurdish refugees was reflected in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 which gave birth to a safe haven whereby U.S. and British air power protected a Kurdish zone inside Iraq. (see Operation Provide Comfort). While the no-fly zone covered Dahuk and Erbil, it left out Sulaymaniyah and Kirkuk. This led to a further series of bloody clashes between Iraqi forces and Kurdish troops. Soon, an uneasy and shaky balance of power was reached, and the Iraqi government withdrew its military and other personnel from the region in October 1991. From this point, Iraqi Kurdistan has achieved de facto independence to be ruled by the two principal Kurdish parties – the Kurdish Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan – free from the control of Baghdad. The region then adopted its own flag and national anthem.
The Kurds held parliamentary elections in 1992, which held sessions in Irbil. The seats in the parliament were split evenly between Jalal Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and Massoud Barzani's Kurdish Democratic Party.
Since the Iraqi government had withdrawn its forces from Kurdistan in October 1991, Baghdad had imposed an economic blockade over the region, reducing its oil and food supplies. The Kurdish economy also suffered heavily because a United Nations embargo on Iraq was still in place, preventing trade between Kurdistan and other nations. As such, all trade between Iraqi Kurdistan and the outside world was done through the black market. The PUK and KDP jockeyed each other for control over smuggling routes.
Read more about this topic: Iraqi Kurdish Civil War
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