Fighting in Iraq hits close to home for Utah Kurd


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COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — Kamal Bewar fled to the United States from Iraq when Saddam Hussein was terrorizing the Kurdish people two decades ago.

On Mondays, he gets daily updates on the brutal fighting in Iraqi Kurdistan from his brother.

"The fighting is so intense," he said from his home in Cottonwood Heights. "Sometimes, in one day, 200 or 300 people (Kurds) are killed."

He found out Saturday a close cousin was shot and killed as the Kurdish soldiers, known as the Peshmerga, regained control of the northern city of Zumar. His cousin was a Peshmerga captain.

"He was one of the nicest guys, and the kindest heart he had," Bewar said.

Bewar lost two brothers two decades ago, around the time he fled Iraq in 1993. He returned to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom to work for the U.S. government from 2003 until 2005.

"This is the hardest thing: when you have a loved one who dies, and you cannot do anything," he said.

As fighting intensifies with Islamic State militants in Iraqi Kurdistan, especially along the Syrian border, the United Nations says nearly 1 million people have been chased from their homes.

"Peshmerga, fortunately, are going forward," said Bewar, "ISIS is running away."

During his lifetime, war has rarely ceased in his homeland.

"Whether it was Saddam's era, or other times, it's always been there."

Weapons from the U.S. and other Western allies in recent weeks give the Kurds renewed optimism. But Bewar says the Kurds are still out-manned and out-trained.

"We don't have trained people to fight those well-trained individuals: ISIS groups," he said.

Despite the sacrifices, Bewar says the Kurds remain resolved about their freedom.

"I'm proud of my cousin and my brothers who were killed, sacrificing their lives to protect Kurdistan, to protect our land," he said.

The latest reports from the United Nations show that people displaced in Kurdistan are scattered across more than 1,000 camps.

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Jed Boal

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