Student protests have in past weeks rocked the town of Sulaimaniyah in Iraq’s Kurdistan region. Unrest in the governorate is not new. However, these demonstrations are a source of concern for the authorities because of the protesters’ impulsiveness—and the possible attempts by some of them to replicate the wave of anti-establishment rallies that erupted in Baghdad and the south of Iraq in Oct. 2019.

A narrower focus than in October 2019

Recent events have reaffirmed Sulaimaniyah’s status as a site of protests. On Nov. 20, hundreds of university and technical institute students gathered in front of the Sulaimaniyah University building. They demanded that payment of their monthly grants, which had been halted in 2014, should be resumed. They also demanded that these grants—amounting to about 40 USD for students who live in the city and about 65 USD for those residing on its outskirts—should be increased...