Israel and the Kurds of North Iraq

The strategically complex security environment in the Middle East has led to a kind of coordination among Israel and certain groups of the Kurds living in north Iraq. Having long adopted the alliance of the periphery doctrine, Israel has tried to expand its relations with the non-Arab countries and ethnicities of the region. These groups, in turn, have sought to attain the cause of independence, using Israeli and U.S. leverage. By explaining the bases of such coordination, the author examines the ups and downs of such ties and explores the policies adopted by Iraq's neighboring countries towards the subject. According to the author, Iraq's complicated situation following the removal of Saddam Hussein and the neighboring state's policies have caused that the realization of a goal shared by Israel and such groups entailing the establishment of an independent state in north Iraq would be undermined.