The Upsurge of Islamic Fundamentalism in Iraqi Kurdistan in the 1990s
Shak Bernard Hanish

Abstract
In this paper, I will begin with an overview of the situation in the Iraqi Kurdistan in the 1990s and early 2000s. Then, I will discuss the emergence of the Islamic political groups in the area, which became distant second political force in the area following the main Kurdish nationalist parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party-Iraq (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). The emergence of a new faction within the Islamic groups and mainly the rise of Islamic fundamentalist group, which manifested itself in Jund al-Islam (The Soldiers of Islam) group, would be the core of my paper. I will explain the external factors that aided the emergence of such organization. Moreover, the role and the connection of Jund al-Islam with Al-Qaeda organization and the Arab-Afghanis within it will be stressed. Finally, I will explain the structure of Jund al-Islam, its bylaw, and its vision of an Islamic state.

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