Kurds press independence vote despite threats

From the scrappy town of Zakho on the Turkish border to the gleaming new office towers of this provincial capital, the Kurdistan flag is flown throughout northern Iraq on apartment balconies, storefronts and construction cranes.

Demonstrators wave it at the almost daily rallies to support a yes vote in Monday’s controversial referendum on Kurdish independence from Iraq.

“The sun (on the flag) stands for rebirth and our ancestors’ faith,” electrical engineer Amanj Shwani, 28, said at a recent rally. “We hope to see that in our own lives next week when our people will vote yes for full independence.”

Despite threats from Baghdad and opposition to the vote from the United States, Turkey and Iran, supporters of the referendum stick to a message that resonates with most Kurds.

The United States has voiced concerns that the referendum will distract from the fight against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. Skilled Kurdish fighters known as peshmerga have been key U.S. allies in the drive to oust ISIS from Iraq and Syria.

The governments of Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria vehemently oppose the prospect of the Kurds carving out an independent state from their territory.

So far, Kurdish leaders appear determined to go ahead with the vote.

Kurdish supporters of independence say Kurdistan can stand on its own. It has oil reserves equal to 45 billion barrels, meaning it could potentially rival Nigeria as an energy supplier in less than a decade.