Kurdistan 24


Kurdistan 24 is a Kurdish broadcast news station based in Hewler, Kurdistan with foreign bureaus in Washington, DC and Cologne, Germany. The service was launched on October 31, 2015, with television programs being broadcast in the Sorani and Kurmanji dialects of Kurdish, as well as in English and Turkish. Noreldin Waisy is the founder and former General Manager of Kurdistan 24. The current General Manager is Mohammed Kerim.

Television

Kurdistan 24 launched its television network on October 31, 2015, aiming to deliver 24-hour news from Kurdistan and around the world to "transform the media landscape of Kurdistan." The television network covers events across the Greater Kurdistan area and offers analysis on relevant issues in this region.
In addition to political news, Kurdistan 24 offers segments on the Region's culture from all four parts of Kurdistan. It also updates its viewers on news of the sports world.

Website

Kurdistan 24 provides news online in Kurdish, English, Arabic, Turkish, and Farsi. Their websites covers news in Kurdistan, the Middle East, and internationally. Additionally, Kurdistan 24 provides coverage of culture, sports, and economy in Kurdistan and abroad.
It also offers its readers a section for original interviews, as well as transcriptions of interviews after they've been aired on the television network. The network also provides readers with regular analysis and opinion pieces covering relevant issues in the Kurdistan Region and the Middle East.

Radio

Kurdistan 24 offers a radio broadcast in Kurdish. This is available in Kurdistan and to an international audience as well.

Controversies

The 2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum created a high level of political and military tension between the autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government and the governments of Iraq, Iran, and Turkey. In the aftermath of this referendum, Kurdistan 24 became a political target.
Turkey removed three television channels based in Southern Kurdistan, including Kurdish news agency Kurdistan 24, from its TurkSat satellite, allegedly over broadcasting violations during the Kurdistan Region's independence referendum.
The audio/visual media office of the Iraqi government’s Media and Communications Commission issued a decree ordering the shutdown of Kurdistan 24 TV broadcast, the banning of its crew and seizure of their equipment across Iraq. The decree claimed the grounds for the move was that Kurdistan 24 is not licensed, and for programs “that incite violence and hate and target social peace and security.” However, Kurdistan 24 is licensed by the Ministry of Culture of the Kurdistan Regional Government, which under the Iraqi Constitution is empowered to run its own affairs.