In the 1980s, thousands of Kurds made for these mountains and for Iran, to escape the poison gas attacks of the Saddam Hussein regime. Now, the traffic is in the opposite direction.
Baghdad blamed Turkey for a strike on Sulaymaniyah airport after planes using the airport in northern Iraq were banned from Turkish air space
A US official confirmed there was a strike on a convoy in the area and US military personnel were in it, but there were no casualties.
The major question now is whether the agreement will become temporary and whether Erbil’s oil exports will continue without interruption and lead to more stability for the region.
The HDP, or Peoples' Democratic Party, said it will not field a candidate in May’s presidential election, echoing successful past strategy.
Iran's Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Shamkhani signed the deal with Iraq's National Security Advisor Qasim al-Araji.