The Kurds in the Middle East

A four-part series of virtual discussions sponsored by Justice for Kurds and the Jackson Institute

The Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, in partnership with the nonprofit organization Justice for Kurds, will host a four-part virtual discussion series on “The Kurds in the Middle East.”

The conference opening on Tuesday, April 13, at 12:00pm EST will feature a keynote address from Kurdistan Region President H.E. Nechirvan Barzani.

Panel discussions will then include an impressive array of American, European, and Middle Eastern practitioners, including senior Kurdish representatives from Iraq and Syria.

The virtual sessions will take place every Tuesday, between April 13 and May 4, from 12:00 to 1:00pm EST.

The sessions will be open to the Yale community and general public, as well as recorded for distribution afterwards.

Events in the Series

Justice for Kurds

Tuesday, April 13, 12:00-1:00pm

Opening Keynote
Nechirvan Barzani, President of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Moderator
Emma Sky, Senior Fellow and Director, Maurice R. Greenberg World Fellows Program, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Panelists
Thomas Kaplan, Chairman, Justice for Kurds
Bernard-Henri Lévy, Author and President, Justice for Kurds


Watch the recording

Regional Power Competition and the Kurds

Tuesday, April 20, 12:00-1:00pm

Moderator
Emma Sky, Senior Fellow and Director, Greenberg World Fellows Program,  Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Panelists
Gen. David Petraeus, Jackson Senior Fellow, Yale University; Chairman, KKR Global Institute
Amb. Dennis Ross, William Davidson Distinguished Fellow, Washington Institute for Near East Policy


Watch the recording

Kurdish Perspectives from the Region

Tuesday, April 27, 12:00-1:00pm

Moderator
Rory Stewart, Jackson Senior Fellow

Panelists
Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, Kurdistan Regional Government Representative to the United States
Sinam Mohamad, Representative of the Syrian Democratic Council to the United States


Watch the recording

Does America Need a New Strategy for Iraq, Syria, and the Kurds?

Tuesday, May 4, 12:00-1:00pm

Moderator
Janine di Giovanni, Senior Fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Panelists
Amb. Robert Ford, Jackson Senior Fellow, Yale University
Kenneth Pollack, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute


Watch the recording

More about Justice for Kurds

Justice for Kurds is a not-for-profit advocacy group that seeks to educate and raise public awareness for the Kurdish cause, politics, history, culture and societies in America and abroad.

Photo credit

The photograph shown above is of the Citadel of Erbil in Iraq. Photo credit: Marc Roussel