Kurds V Ayatollah

The new Islamic republic in Iran has turned out not to be as revolutionary as some of its most vocal supporters in New Zealand would, I'm sure, have liked. Ever since the downfall of the Shah some three months ago, the significant Kurdish nationality has kept up armed struggle against new regime. Their complaint has been that after the Shah fell and many of the local big landowners with him, the Kurdish peasants took control of the land in their area. The Ayatollah wasn't so keen on this and has forced a "land tribunal" on the people of the area.

Last week the Kurds had the major city of Sanandaj under seige and were conducting raids against both the barracks of the Iranian army and the local "Islamic militia".