ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The tourism sector has been hard hit after Baghdad imposed punitive measures on the Kurdistan Region following the independence referendum and the eruption of military clashes between the Iraqi army and Peshmerga on October 16. The Region’s tourist spots have seen a significant drop in the number of visitors. “Because our borders are closed and there is no way for tourists to come in, in the wake of recent situation that engulfed the Region, the number of our guests has been considerably reduced from 200 or 250 guests to 10 on a weekly basis,” the owner of a hotel in Erbil explained to Rudaw. Many restaurants and guesthouses in Erbil have had to lay off employees after Kurdistan Region’s international flights were banned and borders temporarily closed. “Tourists cannot come to the cities as the border roads and the airports have been shut and that largely affects the tourism sector such as the hotels, cafeterias,” said Shukur Aziz, deputy head of the Erbil Restaurants and Guest Houses Group. Sales of fish at an Erbil restaurant owned by Shikar Hazim have plummeted. “Our sales have decreased by 60 percent particularly this month,” sighed Hazim. “There is no market.” “We used to sell half a ton of fish every day. Nowadays, it does not even reach 200 kilos a day.” The tourism sector, trying to rebound after years of war with ISIS, was looking promising in the first months of the year, according to the Ministry of Tourism. But relations between Erbil and Baghdad took a turn for the worst when the Region proceeded with its independence referendum, despite Iraqi opposition. After the vote, the central government enacted a set of measures against the Region including a ban on international flights to and from the Kurdistan Region and deployment of federal troops into the disputed areas which eventually resulted in the fall of Kirkuk to Baghdad on October 16. Iran temporarily closed its land borders with the Kurdistan Region at Baghdad’s request. It has since opened some crossings and said it will open the remaining in the coming days. According to the tourism ministry, the Kurdistan Region saw a 60 percent increase in the number of visitors in the first four months of the year over the same period in 2016. This led to a six-fold increase in revenue for an industry that had largely almost stagnated during the war with ISIS. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) had planned to invest in modern infrastructure and build hundreds of new tourist attractions across the Region, spending an estimated $100 million over the coming years to revive and develop an industry which many believed would be profitable in the long-run. The Kurdistan Region, able to offer security and beautiful nature, is a popular destination for Iraqis and regional tourists.
