Peshmerga
The Peshmerga (Kurdish: پێشمەرگه, romanized: Pêşmerge, lit. ''Those Who Face Death'') are the internal security forces of the Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, federal regions (such as the Kurdistan Region) are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the respective regions, such as police, security forces, and regional guards." Other security institutions of the Kurdistan Region include the Zêrevanî (gendarmerie), Asayish (security and counterterrorism service), Parastin u Zanyarî (intelligence agency) and the Kurdish police force. The modern Peshmerga were established in 1946 as the national army of the Mahabad republic. However, the history of Kurdish armed fighters dates back to antiquity and was partly organized in the 16th to 19th century, when they served as soldiers for various Kurdish tribal leaders and principalities, as well as tribal paramilitary border guards under Ottoman and Safavid rule. By the 20th century, these forces had evolved into a more disciplined and organized guerrilla movement fighting for the independence of Kurdistan, and in the 21st century they were institutionalized under the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
Formally, the Peshmerga are under the command of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs (MoPA) 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 (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). 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 (MoU) 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.
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