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Founded | 2005 | ||||||
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Commenced operations | 2005 | ||||||
Ceased operations | 2006 | ||||||
Headquarters | Erbil, Kurdistan Region | ||||||
Key people | Kawa Besarani |
Sawan Airlines was an airline company that provided flights between The Kurdistan Region's cities Erbil and Sulaimaniyah and some cities in Europe.
In Kurdish, "sawan" means "newborn". The name was chosen to recognize the airline was the first Kurdish airline in Iraqi and Kurdish history. The airline was formed by a group of private Kurdish investors, headed by Kawa Besarani, intending to end the isolation of the Kurdistan region, which at the time required traveling through Baghdad or travelling through Turkey, Iran or Syria to get to the rest of the world. The airline used leased aircraft with Greek or German crews. [1]
The first flight from London's Stansted Airport to Erbil took place on October 26, 2005. [2] By 2006, plans were made for flights from Amsterdam to Sulaimaniyah. [3]
Jalal Talabani was an Iraqi politician who served as the sixth president of Iraq from 2005 to 2014, as well as the president of the Governing Council of Iraq. He was ethnically Kurdish.
Sulaymaniyah or Slemani, is a city in the east of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, not far from the Iran–Iraq border. It is surrounded by the Azmar (Ezmer), Goizha (Goyje) and Qaiwan (Qeywan) Mountains in the northeast, Baranan Mountain in the south and the Tasluja Hills in the west. The city has a semi-arid climate with very hot dry summers and cold wet winters.
Kurdistan Region is an autonomous administrative entity within the Republic of Iraq. It comprises four Kurdish-majority divisions of Arab-majority Iraq: the Erbil Governorate, the Sulaymaniyah Governorate, the Duhok Governorate, and Halabja Governorate. The KRI is bordered by Iran to the east, by Turkey to the north, and by Syria to the west. It does not govern all of Iraqi Kurdistan, and lays claim to the disputed territories of northern Iraq; these territories have a predominantly non-Arab population and were subject to the Ba'athist Arabization campaigns throughout the late 20th century. Though the KRI's autonomy was realized in 1992, one year after Iraq's defeat in the Gulf War, these northern territories remain contested between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Government of Iraq to the present day. In light of the dispute, the KRI's constitution declares the city of Kirkuk as the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. However, the KRI does not control Kirkuk, and the Kurdistan Region Parliament is based in Erbil. In 2014, when the Syria-based Islamic State began their Northern Iraq offensive and invaded the country, the Iraqi Armed Forces retreated from most of the disputed territories. The KRI's Peshmerga then entered and took control of them for the duration of the War in Iraq (2013–2017). In October 2017, following the defeat of the Islamic State, the Iraqi Armed Forces attacked the Peshmerga and reasserted control over the disputed territories.
Erbil International Airport, is the main airport of the city of Erbil in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq. It is administered by the Iraqi Government and the Kurdistan Regional Government under a committee consisting of the Prime Minister of Kurdistan and is one of two international airports, with a third in Duhok being under construction. The new modern airport opened in 2005. The airport has one of the longest runways in the world.
Sulaymaniyah International Airport is 14 kilometers west of the city of Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The airport encompasses an approximate area of 13.5 square kilometers. The combined capacity of the airport terminals is currently set at 1.5 million passengers per year and can be expanded to accommodate up to 3 million passengers annually.
Kurdistan Airlines A.K.A Kurdish Airlines was a Kurdish airline based in the United Arab Emirates.
Azmar Airlines was a charter airline based in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan. It was founded in 2005 and meanwhile went out of business.
Erbil, also called Hawler, is the capital and most populated city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The city is in the Erbil Governorate.
Nawshirwan Mustafa was an Iraqi Kurdish politician who served as the General Coordinator of the Movement for Change and the leader of the opposition in the Kurdistan Region from 1 April 2009 to his death on 19 May 2017.
Relations of Kurdistan Region of Iraq with foreign states and organizations are conducted by the Kurdistan Region. Political stability and a rapidly developing economy have given the KRG the opportunity to pursue a foreign policy independent from the central government's. The KRG's primary body for directing its foreign affairs is the Department of Foreign Relations (DFR). The DFR's foremost objectives are to raise the global profile of the Kurdistan Region, improve the Region's international ties with various governments and international organizations, and present emerging business opportunities in the Kurdistan Region to regional and international actors.
Economy in Kurdistan Region consists of the autonomous economy in Kurdistan region in northern Iraq. The Kurdistan region's economy is dominated by the oil industry, agriculture, manufacturing and tourism.
Rudaw Media Network, is a major media broadcaster in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq.
The 2005 Erbil bombing was a suicide attack on the offices of Kurdish political parties in Erbil, Kurdistan Region, on May 4, 2005. The attacker detonated explosives strapped to his body as people lined up outside a police recruiting center in Erbil. Ansar al-Sunna claimed responsibility. This attack is an example of religious terrorism, groups who commit terrorist acts because of religion believe that their deity or deities are on their side and that their violence is divinely inspired and approved. This attack is also an example of Strategic terrorism. Which is a form of terrorism where the terrorist plans to inflict mass casualties. The goals of Strategic terrorism are normally not local objectives but global objectives or regional objectives. Ansar al-Sunna's goal is to transform the country of Iraq into an Islamic state so their goals are regional.
Nalia Radio and Television (NRT) claims to be the first ever independent media network in the Kurdistan Region. The corporation claims to be independent, It was formed in 2010 by freelance journalists who launched the first ever independent media network, funded by Nalia company.
Czech Republic–Kurdistan Region relations are bilateral relations between the Czech Republic and the Kurdistan Region. The Czech Republic is represented in the Kurdistan Region through a consulate general in Erbil since 2006, while the Kurdistan region has no representation in the Czech Republic. Relations between the two are characterized by high level talks and cooperation against ISIS. Kurdish President Massoud Barzani visited the Czech Republic in 2015, meeting President Miloš Zeman and other senior government officials. In November 2015, Czech President Miloš Zeman said that he believes the Kurdistan Region will soon become independent.
Austria–Kurdistan Region relations are bilateral relations between Austria and the Kurdistan Region. Austria is represented in Kurdistan Region through a commercial office in Erbil since 2006, while Kurdistan Region has a representation in Vienna since 2012.
Kurdistan Region–Romania relations are bilateral relations between Kurdistan Region and Romania. Ties between Romania and the Kurdistan date back to the mid-20th century when Romanian leader Nicolae Ceaușescu held meetings with Kurdish rebels fighting the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Holy See–Kurdistan Region relations are bilateral relations between Holy See and Kurdistan Region. The Holy See has no representation in Kurdistan Region and the latter has no representation in the Holy See.
Sawan is the fifth month in the Hindu calendar, corresponding to July-August in the Gregorian calendar.
Kurdistan Region–Russia relations are bilateral relations between Kurdistan Region and Russia. While Kurdistan Region has a representation in Moscow, Russia has a consulate general in Erbil which opened on 28 November 2007. Relations between the Kurds and the Russians date back to the second half of the 1800s when Russian interest in Kurds because of expansionist ambitions. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union supported the Kurdish rebels against Iraq until the European power withdrew politically from the Middle East in the late 1970s because of the Middle-Eastern backlash from the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.