Description

The 1970 Autonomy Agreement between the Iraqi government and Mustafa Barzani, the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, was a significant pact following the First Iraqi-Kurdish War. This agreement aimed to establish an Autonomous Region encompassing the three main Kurdish governorates along with adjoining districts where the majority of the population was Kurdish, as determined by a census. The plan also included provisions for Kurdish representation in government bodies within a span of four years. At that time, it stood as the most earnest endeavor to resolve the longstanding conflict between Iraq and the Kurds.

However, during the same period, the Iraqi government initiated a program to Arabize the oil-rich areas of Kirkuk and Khanaqin. Unfortunately, the effort to achieve Kurdish autonomy through the peace plan was unsuccessful, leading to the eruption of the Second Iraqi-Kurdish War in 1974 and further escalating the ongoing Kurdish-Iraqi conflict.