AKRE, Kurdistan Region of Iraq — For many the vernal equinox is just a date, but in Iran and Kurdish areas it is Nowruz, the Persian new year and a central expression of Kurdish identity. Akre, an ancient town set against rugged mountains in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, has long been a focal point for Nowruz gatherings.
About 30 million Kurds live across contiguous areas of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey, separated by borders but bound by common culture and history. In Akre, people traditionally light torches at sunset and carry them up the mountainside to symbolize the triumph of light over darkness. Women wore flowing, glittering Kurdish dresses and ornate headpieces, while many men chose traditional baggy trousers and woven sashes.
This year, hundreds climbed the mountain beneath storm clouds, leaving burning burlap torches along the route beside a giant unfurled Kurdish flag. The torches evoke a Kurdish myth in which a blacksmith leads villagers to overthrow a tyrant, signaling freedom with mountaintop flames. Organizers also arranged flames to form the numbers two and one, a reference to the saying ‘two plus two equals one,’ a symbolic claim that Kurdish regions across four states form a single nation.
The observance was more subdued than in some years. Torrential rain and the broader Middle East conflict, which has included Iranian drones and missiles crossing the Kurdish region as they targeted US positions, kept some people away. Still, many Kurds from Syria, Iran and Turkey braved the weather and security risks to take part.
Political ties among Kurdish authorities have warmed recently. Relations between Iraq’s Kurdistan regional government and leaders of Syria’s Kurdish-led region, once strained, have thawed; in January Iraqi Kurdish officials offered political backing and humanitarian aid after Syrian government advances into Kurdish-held areas.
Despite rain and security concerns, crowds gathered in the central plaza to dance, pose in traditional dress and carry torches through the town. For participants, Nowruz in Akre is both a spring celebration and a vivid reaffirmation of shared culture and unity across divided Kurdish lands.