#Kurdistan

In Part One of this article, I shared my experiences after visiting gun stores in Baghdad, and it is not what most people expect to see in Iraq. Gun stores are small and cramped, with a relatively limited choice of firearms and really high prices. Thankfully, things in Iraqi Kurdistan are way different.

Kalashnikov Media shared these pictures of decorated Kalashnikovs.

Miles shared this photo of a Kurd Peshmerga posing with his under folding AK. The AK has been decorated with what looks like crocheted koozie covers. I assume someone from his family made them. They resemble the Kurdistan flag.

I challenge you to watch the above video, and tell me the majority of the tactics, gear, people, and location couldn’t have been easily mistaken for a large training center in the United States, such as Gunsite, Blackwater. The Erbil Training Center (ETC) claims to be the largest training facility within Iraq, and autonomous Kurdistan (northern Iraq). ETC boosts numerous short and long distance ranges, a CQB maneuver house, rappel tower, in addition to a wide variety of other establishments and shooting facilities. The Center appears to be much more specialized within the PSD and special operations capacity training than strict infantry material, or what the majority of the Peshmerga is engaged in when it comes to fighting Daesh. Indeed, with previous videos of Kurdish “SF” groups, I can recognize some of the background at this facility.

Medium.com has a very interesting blog post about a Kurdish gunsmith …

There is an interesting video on LiveLeak (embedded below) showing Kurdish snipers in North Syria clearing out an al-Qaeda-linked rebel group from a Kurdish village. The four snipers are using identical .50 caliber rifles that are either completely hand made or at least partially hand made.

The Kurdistan Regional Government has been stealthily arming their militia. Recently three planeloads of small arms and ammunition from Bulgaria were delivered to Kurdish officials. The Washington Post reports: