About 150K left Kurdistan Region for Europe in a decade

Shafaq News/ More than 148,000 people from the Kurdistan Region have migrated to Europe since 2014, the majority of them young people, according to the Association of Returnee Refugees in the Kurdistan Region.

In a statement, Abu Bakr Ali, the Association’s head, added that at least 414 of them have died along the way, while others remain missing. Search efforts, he noted, are still ongoing.

The Raparin area alone accounted for more than 33,800 of those departures during the same period, with 112 deaths recorded among those attempting the journey to Europe.

Ali expressed regret over what he described as the “lack of serious efforts” by authorities to curb the migration trend. “The responsible institutions have not taken effective steps to address the root causes of migration—whether in terms of job creation, improving public services, or restoring hope among the youth,” he said.

He pointed to worsening economic conditions, high unemployment, weak infrastructure, and a growing sense of hopelessness as key drivers pushing tens of thousands to risk their lives in search of a better future abroad.

Calling for urgent action, Ali urged relevant authorities to tackle the root causes of this “escalating human drain” and to preserve what remains of hope among Kurdistan’s youth. He warned that the continued exodus poses a serious threat to the region’s social and economic future.