Why are Kurdish people risking their lives to seek asylum?

In November 2021, at least 27 people tragically lost their lives in the English channel. Many of them are believed to be from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Likewise, many of the refugees currently at the Belarus/Poland border appear to be from the same region.

This event will host Kamal Chomani, an independent journalist and political analyst from Kurdistan. Chomani will speak about the current situation of these refugees and comment on political developments that have led to recent episodes of migration from the Kurdistan Region to Europe.

About the Speaker:

Kamal Chomani, journalist and political analyst, is the editor of The Kurdistan Times, an independent news, analysis, and commentary outlet, focusing on Kurdistan and the Middle East. He is a graduate student at the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy at Erfurt University in Germany. He was formerly a non-resident fellow at Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy. Kamal Chomani has contributed to Al Monitor, Foreign Policy, 1001IraqiThoughts, The National Interest and many other outlets.

The talk will be moderated by Dr Dilar Dirik, Joyce Pearce Junior Research Fellow at the Refugee Studies Centre.