Kurdistan Democratic Party (Iran)

Not to be confused with Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan.

36°03′52″N 44°36′13″E / 36.0644°N 44.6036°E / 36.0644; 44.6036

Kurdistan Democratic Party
حیزبی دێموکراتی کوردستان
AbbreviationKDP
HDK
Secretary-GeneralAbdullah Hasanzadeh (2006-2012) Mostafa Moloudi (2017–2019)
Khalid Azizi (2012–2017 and 2019-2022)
FoundedDecember 1, 2006; 17 years ago (2006-12-01)[1]
Dissolved21 August 2022; 2 years ago (2022-08-21)[2]
Merger ofDemocratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan
Split fromDemocratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan
HeadquartersKoy Sanjaq, Iraqi Kurdistan[3]
IdeologyKurdish nationalism
Socialism[citation needed]
Political positionCentre-left[citation needed]
International affiliationSocialist International
Website
kdppress.org

The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP; Kurdish: حیزبی دێموکراتی کوردستان, romanized: Hizba Dêmokrata Kurdistanê, abbreviated HDK; Persian: حزب دموکرات کردستان) was an ethnic party of Kurds in Iran, which split from Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) in 2006 after a dispute over choosing its next leader in the latter's 13th convention.[4] The KDPI and Iran’s Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP-Iran) have been engaged in several rounds of reunification talks over the years.[5] On August 21, 2022, the two parties announced that they would finally reunite.[6][7]

The first time in 2016, Iranian agents had planted a bomb outside the party headquarters that killed and injured several members.[8] The second time was in 2018 when the Iranian regime attacked the KDP-I party headquarters with ballistic missiles from Iran to Iraqi Kurdistan where the party headquarters is located.[9]

The party was made a full member of the Socialist International at its November 2015 Council meeting in Luanda, Angola.[10]

  1. ^ Reese Erlich, Robert Scheer (2016). Iran Agenda: The Real Story of U.S. Policy and the Middle East Crisis. Routledge. p. 133. ISBN 978-1317257370.
  2. ^ "هەردوو حیزبی دیموکراتی رۆژهەڵاتی کوردستان یەکیان گرتەوە". www.rudaw.net (in Central Kurdish). Retrieved 2022-08-21.
  3. ^ United Kingdom: Home Office, Country Information and Guidance - Iran: Kurds and Kurdish political groups, July 2016, Version 2.0, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/578f67c34.html [accessed 18 March 2017]
  4. ^ Rodi Hevian (Summer 2013). "THE MAIN KURDISH POLITICAL PARTIES IN IRAN, IRAQ, SYRIA, AND TURKEY: A RESEARCH GUIDE". Middle East Review of International Affairs. 17 (2). Herzliya, Israel: Rubin Center for Research in International Affairs. Archived from the original on 2017-03-28. Retrieved 2017-03-04.
  5. ^ ""KDPI reunion talks continue, could reach agreement by March: KDPI head"". www.rudaw.net. Retrieved 2022-08-08.
  6. ^ ""Iranian Kurdish parties unite after 16 years split"". www.kurdistan24.net. Retrieved 2022-08-26.
  7. ^ ""A joint statement regarding the reunification of the Democratic Party, the beginning of a new phase of effort and struggle"". kurdistanukurd.com. Retrieved 2022-08-26.
  8. ^ "Kurdistan24".
  9. ^ "Iranian Attack on Kurdish Rebel HQ in Iraq Kills 11, Group Says | Voice of America - English".
  10. ^ "Meeting of the SI Council in Luanda, Angola". November 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2016.