Qazi Muhammad ( ku, قازی محەممەد / Qazî Mihemed, fa, قاضی محمد; 1 May 1893 – 31 March 1947) was an Kurdish leader who founded the

Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI; ku, حیزبی دێموکراتی کوردستانی ئێران, Hîzbî Dêmukratî Kurdistanî Êran, HDKA; fa, حزب دموکرات کردستان ایران, Ḥezb-e Demokrāt-e Kordest� ...

and headed the short-lived, Soviet-backed

Republic of Mahabad The Republic of Mahabad or the Republic of Kurdistan ( ku, کۆماری کوردستان / Komara Kurdistanê; fa, جمهوری مهاباد) was a short-lived Kurdish self-governing unrecognized state in present-day Iran, from 22 January to ...

. He was hanged by the

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty ( fa, دودمان پهلوی) was the last Iranian royal dynasty, ruling for almost 54 years between 1925 and 1979. The dynasty was founded by Reza Shah Pahlavi, a non-aristocratic Mazanderani soldier in modern times, who ...

for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

in 1947.

Biography

Qazi Muhammad was born into a noble Kurdish family from Mahabad. His father had cooperated with Simko Shikak during his revolt against the Iranian government in the 1920s, and his brother Sadr Qazi was a member of the Iranian parliament. After his father's death, he was nominated as a judge in Mahabad in the 1930s. Qazi Muhammad later became a member of the Komala Zhian I Kurd, a leading Kurdish organization in Iran at the time supported by the Soviets, in April 1945. Soon after he became its leader. Muhammad acted as the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the

, which was founded in January 1946, and declared publicly in March of the same year. He was also the founder of the

Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI; ku, حیزبی دێموکراتی کوردستانی ئێران, Hîzbî Dêmukratî Kurdistanî Êran, HDKA; fa, حزب دموکرات کردستان ایران, Ḥezb-e Demokrāt-e Kordest� ...

, that was established after the need for a more transparent party was felt by its adherents. ( Komeley Jiyanewey Kurd existed prior to that, as a secret organization.)

Mustafa Barzani Mustafa Barzani ( ku, مەلا مسته‌فا بارزانی, Mistefa Barzanî; 14 March 1903 – 1 March 1979) also known as Mela Mustafa (Preacher Mustafa), was a Kurdish leader, general and one of the most prominent political figures in mod ...

, one of the leaders of the nationalist Kurdish movement in

Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Kurdistan or Southern Kurdistan ( ku, باشووری کوردستان, Başûrê Kurdistanê) refers to the Kurdish-populated part of northern Iraq. It is considered one of the four parts of "Kurdistan" in Western Asia, which also inc ...

, was also the commander of its army. His cousin, Mohammed Hossein Saif Qazi, was a minister in his cabinet. In April 1946, with the support of the Soviets, Muhammad signed a peace treaty with Ja'far Pishevari of the Azerbaijani republic in which they exchanged assurances that the Azerbaijani and Kurdish minorities rights in each republic would be preserved. A year later, after the Soviets withdrew from

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, the socialist Kurdish Republic was crushed by Iran's central government.

Family

One of his sons, Ali Qazi, is today an active member in the Kurdish movement. One of his daughters, Efat Ghazi, was killed by a letter bomb in

Västerås Västerås ( , , ) is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 154,049. Västerås is the se ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

, in 1990. The bomb was addressed to her husband, the Kurdish activist Emir Ghazi. Some analysts speculated that the Iranian government might have been involved in the assassination.

References

{{reflist 1893 births 1947 deaths Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan politicians Executed Kurdish people Kurdish nationalists Executed Iranian people People executed by Iran by hanging People executed by Pahlavi Iran People executed for treason against Iran Kurdish independence activists

Biography

Family

See also

References