Kurdish civilians have suffered and are still suffering the consequences of the war, even many years after its official end. Smuggling petrol from the border of Iran has become one of the only means of income, with smugglers paid US$22 per trip for carrying four to six jerry cans of petrol back into Iraq. Kurd fighters, the Peshmerga, who fought with US forces in the beggining of the war, still have a presence in the region, training and fighting for recognition their homeland.

Sulaimaniya, in Iraqi Kurdistan bordering Turkey and Iran, is one of the most densely landmined areas in the world and during last three decades has been the scene of incessant internal and international conflicts. In 1998 the Emergency Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration Centre was established to help the numerous amputees living without prosthesis or assistance – who can’t work and have insufficient means for themselves and their families – issues that victims of Saddam Hussein’s 1988 gas attack are still struggling with today, as a peaceful life after war remains a distant hope.

Davide Monteleone / Contrasto
www.contrasto.it