Kurds Posturing for Own Homeland

Article: Kurds are an ethnic people with a distinct language, history and land. Here is a map of their ancestral land, situated between Syria, Turkey, Iran and Iraq. For years, Kurds in Iraq and Iran have struggled for independence, to create their own nation. With the civil war in Syria, Kurds in late 2013 declared their own state in northern Syria. They also announced their own constitution, which interestingly does not mention Islam and has equal rights for men and women. It calls for the Kurdish language to be equal to Arabic, for a national anthem, a national holiday, etc. The nation already has its own police force, army, flag and identity. Other nations in the neighborhood are threatened by this idea.

Discussion: 

• The Kurds claim to be an independent people worthy of self-determination, not Iraqi, Iranian, etc. What does it mean to be a "Nation?" What attributes should a people have to have their own national identity?
• Why do the Kurds want independence? Would you if you were Kurdish?
• Fun fact: some of the most ancient Jewish history comes from Kurdish Jews, who spoke in Aramaic, the language of the Talmud, until emigrating to Israel in the 1950s and 60s. They lived among Iraqi Kurds for thousands of years.
• The US and Israel has thus far remained silent on the Kurdish declaration of independence. How do you think they should come out?