Baloch–Kurdish relations

Baloch–Kurdish relations covers the historical relations between Kurds and Baloch people, two Iranian peoples.

History

Balochis were described as being the group which has the closest historic links to Kurds, genealogically and linguistically. Kurds and Balochis, both being Iranic, originated from Andronovo in Central Asia, before migrating westwards accompanying each other. While in Aleppo, Balochis later migrated to the Caspian region, and then to modern day Balochistan, they left Aleppo in the 4th century and settled in Balochistan in the 7th century AD. Aleppo still has a significant Kurdish population. Balochis did not write about their origin until the 20th, before which they largely passed it down thru oral tradition. Since the migration to Balochistan, the Balochi language became influenced by Persian, Urdu, Pashto, and Dravidian languages. However, there is still similarities, and the two Western Iranian languages, despite being separated for so long, are still the closest languages to each other. Balochis and Kurds, prior to their migration to Mesopotamia, also lived in the Alborz mountains. The word "borz", meaning "high", is found only in Balochi and Kurdish. Both Kurds and Balochis claim descent from the Medes. Aside from the claims whether Baloch are descendants of Kurds, or whether Kurds are descendants of Baloch, they both belonged to the same tribes and were one group before the migrations. There are Kurds with Balochi-language surnames and tribe names, and there is Balochis with Kurdish-language surnames and tribe names as well. Modern DNA samples of Balochis and Kurds confirmed a relation.

In modern history, Balochis and Kurds, both stateless and divided across different countries, were always fond of each other. Balochis have been noted as more secular than others in their region. Kurds have also been noted for being fairly secular. Aside from secularists, even Islamists among the Kurds and Baloch have cooperated with each other in support of their independence movements. Women played a big role in both the Kurdish and Balochi movements. Following a wave of Balochi women-led protests against the Pakistani government, a group of Kurdish women sent a message titled "from Rojava to all the women and people of Balochistan" in which they said "until the end, we stand with you and we will not let go of each other". Baloch groups showed overwhelming support for the 2017 Kurdish referendum. Kurds who fled Saddam Hussein and went to Pakistan were often mistreated by Pakistani authorities, like the Baloch. In Iran, where Kurds and Balochis both reside, there is a very notable solidarity between them. They have accompanied each other in protests, chanting "Kurds and Balochis are brothers, all thirsty for the blood of the leader." They both make a large number of prisoners in Iran. The Islamic Republic commonly alleges that Israel and the United States are active in both the Balochi and Kurdish movements. Turkey, while arresting Kurdish activists, has also arrested Baloch activists and handed them to Pakistan and Iran. Allah Nazar Baloch of the BLF supported Kurds. There were also reports of cooperation between the BLA and YPG, and plans to form a Kurdish-Balochi front in Afghanistan to attack Turkish and Pakistani bases, as well as to fund separatists in Kurdistan and Balochistan.