The Kurds are the largest stateless ethnic group in the world, with a history shaped by shifting borders and political repression. Before World War 1, Kurdish communities lived border-free between the Ottoman and Persian Empires. After the Ottomans lost the war, international treaties made empty promises of an independent Kurdistan across Kurdish-inhabited regions of modern Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Armenia. This promise collapsed during the Turkish War of Independence. Subsequent treaties restored much of Turkey’s territory and excluded Kurdistan, ending the first attempt at Kurdish statehood. In Turkey, Kurds were denied political rights, labeled “Mountain Turks,” and prohibited from using their language or expressing their culture. Repression extended beyond Turkey. In Iraq, the Ba’ath regime’s Anfal campaign in the 1980s involved forced displacement and genocide against Kurds. In Iran and Syria, Kurdish political participation and cultural expression were heavily restricted. In Syria, many Kurds were denied citizenship, leaving them stateless and without basic rights. Today, conditions have improved in some areas. In Turkey, Kurdish language use, media, and cultural expression are now permitted. However, Kurds continue to face discrimination, lack constitutional recognition, and remain without a sovereign state. The Kurdish issue remains a complex international challenge, rooted in historical promises, regional politics, and the difficulty of reconciling Kurdish self-determination with existing state borders.