Flag of Kurdistan

The flag used as the national flag of Kurdistan first appeared during the Kurdish struggle for independence from the Ottoman Empire. It is said to have been created in the 1920s by the organisation of Xoybûn (Khoyboon). It was later the flag of the Kurdish Republic of Mahabad, proclaimed in 1946 and sacked later the same year. The flag is now widely used by Kurds in Turkey and Iraq, be they separatist or not. It is flown by the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq. It resembles the Iranian flag. The flag is banned in Syria and Iran, which both have substantial Kurdish minorities.