Iraqi Kurdistan is the safest place in Iraq. This spring I returned there to better understand just how Kurdistan was keeping itself safe, even as Arab Iraq descends into civil war. Naturally, I began with what I could see: the Kurds have an effective police force and a strong military. A monopoly on violence is the obvious answer, one which suggests that bringing peace to the Arab south won't be more difficult than providing guns and training. Unfortunately, the real answer turns out to be much simpler to see but the solution much harder to realize.

These photographs cover much of Iraqi Kurdistan, from the Iranian border to Kurdish outposts near Makhmour in the mixed Arab-Kurdish area near Mosul. Each reflects an aspect of why the Kurds are able to protect themselves, for the first time, from their Arab neighbors to the south.