title: Philanthropy

text: The rise of philanthrocapitalism can be attributed to global capitalism. There is an understanding that philanthropy is not worthwhile if no economic benefit can be derived by philanthropy organisations, both from a social and private perspective. Therefore, philanthropy has been seen as a tool to sustain economic growth and the firm's own growth, based on human capital theory. Through education, specific skills are taught which enhance people's capacity to learn and their productivity at work.


title: Philanthropy

text: Intel invests in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curricular standards in the US and provides learning resources and materials for schools, for its own innovation and revenue. The New Employment Opportunities initiative in Latin America is a regional collaboration to train 1 million youth by 2022 to raise employment standards and ultimately provide a talented pool of labour for companies.


title: Philanthropy

text: Celebrity philanthropy refers to celebrity-affiliated charitable and philanthropic activities. It is an increasingly prevalent topic of scholarship in studies of 'the popular' vis-à-vis the modern and post-modern world. Structured and systematised charitable giving by celebrities is a relatively new phenomenon. Although charity and fame are associated historically, it was only in the 1990s that entertainment and sports celebrities from affluent western societies became involved with a particular type of philanthropy. Celebrity philanthropy in contemporary western societies is not isolated to large one-off monetary donations by definition. It involves celebrities using their publicity, brand credibility and personal wealth to promote not-for-profit organisations, which are increasingly 'business-like' in form. This is sometimes termed as 'celanthropy' – the fusion of celebrity and cause as a representation of what the organisation advocates.


title: Philanthropy

text: The advent of celebrity philanthropy has seen the contraction of government involvement in areas such as welfare support and foreign aid to name a few. This can be identified from the proliferation of neoliberal policies. Conversely, public interest groups, not-for-profit organisations and the United Nations now budget extensive amounts of time and money to use celebrity endorsers in their campaigns. An example of this is the People's Climate March, which took place on 21 September 2014. The demonstration was part of the larger People's Climate Movement, which aims to raise awareness of climate change and environmental issues more generally. Notable celebrities who are part of this campaign include actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo and Edward Norton.


title: Philanthropy

text: Philanthropic capitalism or Philanthrocapitalism is a way of doing philanthropy through the capitalist realm. Instead of it being for profit, the philanthropist does it as a non-profit and only breaks even or even takes a small loss, but the overall gain to the community would be greater than the small loss they in-cured. For example, if a philanthropist puts up $10 million dollars for neighborhood revitalization to build new homes in place of dilapidated housing and only breaks even or takes on a small loss selling the homes. If they took a $1,000 loss on each home, 10,000 homes could be made with that initial philanthropic donation. It could be run like a nonprofit organization so they wouldn't have to pay property taxes on the homes as they were waiting to be sold.


title: Philanthropy

text: Despite the initial observed benefits of philanthropy as a variant form of charity, it has been noted that philanthropy has been used by ultra high-net-worth individuals to offset their larger tax liabilities, through charitable contribution deductions enabled by the tax code. In the book "" by Anand Giridharadas, he notes that various philanthropic initiatives by the wealthy elite in practice function to entrench the power structures and special interests of the wealthy elite. For example, despite Robert F. Smith's generosity by paying off the student debt incurred by the Morehouse class of 2019, he simultaneously fought against changes to the tax code that would have made more money available to help low-income students pay for college. As a result, Giridharadas argues, Smith's philanthropic giving functions to reinforce the prevailing status quo and perpetuates income inequality, instead of addressing the root cause of social issues.


title: Philanthropy

text: The ability of wealthy people to deduct a significant amount of their tax liabilities in the form of philanthropic giving, as noted by the late German billionaire shipping magnate and philanthropist Peter Kramer, functioned as "a bad transfer of power", from democratically elected politicians to unelected billionaires, whereby it is no longer "the state that determines what is good for the people, but rather the rich who decide". The Global Policy Forum, an independent policy watchdog which functions to monitor the activities of the United Nations General Assembly, warned governments and international organisations that they should "assess the growing influence of major philanthropic foundations, and especially the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation … and analyse the intended and unintended risks and side-effects of their activities" prior to accepting money from rich donors. In 2015, Global Policy Forum also warned elected politicians that they should be particularly concerned about "the unpredictable and insufficient financing of public goods, the lack of monitoring and accountability mechanisms, and the prevailing practice of applying business logic to the provision of public goods".


title: Philanthropy

text: Giridharadas also argues that philanthrophy also functions to distract the general public from some of the ill-gotten gains that were derived for profit from the marketplace. For example, the Sackler family were known for their generous philanthropic giving to various cultural institutions worldwide. However, their philanthropic giving functioned as deception and propaganda, as their legacy of generosity was tainted by the subsequent exposure of Purdue Pharma's role in encouraging and exacerbating the opioid epidemic. As a result of their exposed ill-gotten gains from the social issues caused by the philanthropic donors, the British institutions of the National Portrait Gallery, London and the Tate, along with the American institution Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, announced their rejection of charitable giving from the Sackler family trusts.


title: Bored Ape

text: Bored Ape Yacht Club, often colloquially called Bored Apes, Bored Ape or BAYC, is a non-fungible token (NFT) collection built on the Ethereum blockchain. The collection features profile pictures of cartoon apes that are procedurally generated by an algorithm.


title: Bored Ape

text: The parent company of Bored Ape Yacht Club is Yuga Labs. The project launched in April 2021. Owners of a Bored Ape NFT are granted access to a private online club, exclusive in-person events, and intellectual property rights for the image.


title: Bored Ape

text: As of 2022, Yuga Labs is valued at US$4 billion. This is due in large part to the sales of the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection totalling over US$1 billion. Various celebrities have purchased these non-fungible tokens, including Justin Bieber, Jimmy Fallon, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Gwyneth Paltrow, Madonna, Neymar, Paris Hilton, Timbaland, and Steve Aoki.


title: Bored Ape

text: According to the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) website, the NFT collection was created by four friends who "set out to make some dope apes, test [their] skills, and try to build something (ridiculous)." Bored Ape NFTs, like other NFTs created and used for digital art purposes aim to provide its owners the "original" artwork. Bored Ape NFTs owners are considered in possession of "a unique unit of data recorded in a digital blockchain, which permanently records its provenance or sales history."


title: Bored Ape

text: The collection exists on the Ethereum blockchain and contains 10,000 unique NFTs derived from 172 unique assets. The NFTs function dually as a membership card to Yacht Club. Membership to the club includes access to THE BATHROOM (stylized in all caps), a digital graffiti board where users commonly "draw dicks," according to the founder. The NFTs were originally sold for 0.08 ether each, around $190 at the time of their April 2021 launch and were sold out in 12 hours.


title: Bored Ape

text: As BAYC "has made it clear that NFT holders have full commercialization rights to their ape," Bored Apes differ from other NFTs in that "whoever owns a Bored Ape can spin it into whatever film, music, TV, book, or media project they want."


title: Bored Ape

text: Two of the founders of BAYC, going by the pseudonyms "Gargamel" and "Gordon Goner", describe themselves as "literary bros". The two told "The New Yorker" they initially bonded by arguing about the work of David Foster Wallace. In an interview with CoinDesk, "they evoked Austrian-British philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein's idea of the unutterable to describe [Bored Apes]." The two of them grew up together in Miami. The other two founders go by the pseudonyms "No Sass" and "Emperor Tomato Ketchup". The latter derived his alias from the 1996 Stereolab album of the same name.


title: Bored Ape

text: In February 2022, Gargamel and Gordon Goner's identities were revealed to be Greg Solano and Wylie Aronow, respectively, by "BuzzFeed News". Upon this revelation, Nicole Muniz, the CEO of Yuga Labs confirmed "BuzzFeed"s report. Solano and Aronow went to Twitter, commenting they were doxxed and uploaded images of themselves next to their Bored Ape profile pictures. Solano is a writer and editor, while No Sass and Emperor Tomato Ketchup are programmers. Aronow, the son of boat tycoon Donald Aronow, has been documented as planning to attend an MFA program, before falling ill and becoming a cryptocurrency day trader.


title: Bored Ape

text: Solano and Aronow brought in two friends of theirs, No Sass and Emperor Tomato Ketchup, programmers who could handle the blockchain coding. The latter two were knowledgeable in computer science, having studied the field at the same university Solano attended; however, they "were not crypto-savvy," having both written their first lines of Solidity code, a language used for smart contracts, in February 2021.


title: Bored Ape

text: Solano and Aronow came up with the concept of "a shared digital canvas: anyone who bought in could draw on it." They likened this canvas as being used similar to a bathroom at a dive bar; this idea stuck with the two, and they created a science-fiction storyline centered around it. In an interview with "The New Yorker", Aronow elaborated on the concept, which centered on early cryptocurrency investors all becoming billionaires:


title: Bored Ape

text: Now they're just fucking bored. What do you do now that you're wealthy beyond your wildest dreams? You're going to hang out in a swamp club with a bunch of apes and get weird.


title: Bored Ape

text: Aronow clarified that apes were chosen as a mascot for the NFT because of the cryptocurrency phrase "aping in", meaning to buy into a new currency or NFT with abandon, risking a significant amount of money.


title: Bored Ape

text: All Seeing Seneca, or simply Seneca, an Asian-American artist is credited as the lead designer of the artwork featured in Bored Ape NFTs. Seneca clarified that she was not the sole illustrator of the artwork, but the "lead artist of the original collection" and that the ape's body is "exactly line-for-line" her drawing.


title: Bored Ape

text: BAYC co-founder Gargamel stated that "Thomas Dagley, Migwashere, and a couple who chose to remain anonymous" handled traits and environments. Seneca did however, "develop some of the major traits, like the grinning mouth, the popping eyes, and the beanie." Gargamel stated he was "struck" by the expressiveness of Seneca's characters and that "for the apes, we arrived at exactly the mood we were after: existential boredom." Although unable to share specifics, Seneca did state her financial compensation was not ideal, and stated that "not of ton of people know that I did these drawings, which is terrible for an artist."


title: Bored Ape

text: After Bored Ape NFTs became popular, Yuga Labs hired artists, social media managers, Discord community managers, and a CFO. In response to the popularity surrounding Bored Ape, Aronow stated that BAYC was aiming to be a "Web3 lifestyle company." The company released secondary assets like Bored Ape Kennel Club, Mutant Serum, and Mutant Ape Yacht Club, which has increased BAYC's worth, brought more users into the ecosystem and rewarded previous holders and investors.


title: Bored Ape

text: On March 11, 2022, it was announced that Yuga Labs acquired all of the CryptoPunks and Meebits intellectual property for an undisclosed sum. Yuga Labs stated they were granting complete commercial rights to CryptoPunks owners.


title: Bored Ape

text: On March 16, 2022, ApeCoin DAO launched its own token separate from Yuga Labs known as "ApeCoin" ($APE).


title: Bored Ape

text: On April 25, 2022, the official Instagram account of the company was hacked and a phishing link was posted on it. As a result, four Bored Ape NFTs, along with ten more from related collections by Yuga Labs, were stolen with a total estimated worth of approximately $3 million. $1 million worth of funds were transferred into the hacker's account.


title: Bored Ape

text: On April 30, 2022, Yuga Labs launched its metaverse "Otherside", as a collaboration with Animoca Brands. Bored Ape NFTs feature in the music video for Eminem and Snoop Dogg's song "From the D 2 the LBC".


title: Bored Ape

text: In October 2022, it was reported that the US Securities and Exchange Commission were investigating Yuga Labs amid concerns that their NFTs are unregistered security offerings.


title: Bored Ape

text: Bored Apes have been documented by the media as one of the more prominent NFTs. In December 2021, the Bored Ape Yacht Club overtook CryptoPunks as the highest-priced NFTs. Bored Apes, along with other character-based NFTs, would become "a status symbol for owners who regularly use their animated creatures as avatars on social media." Many Bored Ape NFT owners admitted to purchasing their Apes due to the potential marketing and branding projects that can be launched through owning the intellectual property of a Bored Ape NFT. In November 2021, "Rolling Stone" released Bored Ape magazine covers as an NFT magazine. Universal Music Group has signed a band composed of three Bored Apes and one Mutant Ape.


title: Bored Ape

text: On January 4, 2022, "Markets Insider" wrote that "since its inception, the collection has amassed around 11,000 unique owners, according to CryptoSlam. On average, an ape has sold for 84 ether or roughly $344,000 as of publishing." Companies were also noted to purchase Bored Ape NFTs; Adidas bought one in September 2021. Many online media publications wrote about celebrities collecting Bored Apes in late 2021 and early 2022; Eminem, Gwyneth Paltrow, Shaquille O'Neal, Neymar, Snoop Dogg, Mark Cuban, Post Malone, Stephen Curry, Paris Hilton, Jimmy Fallon, and Serena Williams are among various celebrities noted to have purchased Bored Apes. In some cases of celebrities owning Bored Ape NFTs, such as with Justin Bieber, it has been reported that the actual purchase of the NFT may not have been made by the celebrity themselves.


title: Bored Ape

text: Bored Ape Yacht Club holds hosted events in New York, California, Hong Kong, and the UK for its owners. In November 2021, the company held a yacht party and a performance featuring Chris Rock, Aziz Ansari, and The Strokes as part of an entertainment weekend in New York.


title: Bored Ape

text: Many of the celebrities who endorsed the Bored Ape NFT were among the more than 40 defendants named in a class-action lawsuit filed on December 8, 2022 by John T. Jasnoch of Scott+Scott, on behalf of plaintiffs Adonis Real and Adam Titcher "alleging they hoodwinked fans into buying Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs and other Yuga Labs products."


title: Bored Ape

text: The Bored Ape NFTs have attracted a considerable amount of negative reception, with many detractors of BAYC having opined that the NFTs have had a negative impact on artists. Nevertheless, the Bored Ape design has been positively received; Samantha Hissong of "Rolling Stone" wrote that "Bored Ape art isn't as valuable as it is because it's visually pleasing, even though it is. It's valuable because it also serves as a digital identity." Emma Roth of "The Verge" wrote that the apes were "very interesting-looking and sometimes fashionable." Cited by "Intelligencer" in January 2022, Roman Kräussl, an art-finance professor at the University of Luxembourg and Stanford University's Hoover Institution, stated that NFT works like Bored Apes (in addition to CryptoPunks and Cool Cats) had already become iconic.


title: Bored Ape

text: Writing for "The Cut", Claire Lampen commented, "I find the monkey mostly unremarkable, generically familiar, and not very much to my liking if not wholly offensive," and added that "[celebrities] really want us to enjoy this monkey, clap for this monkey, know what this monkey is. They can't make me. I won't let them." Jonathan Jones of "The Guardian" was critical of the Bored Apes NFTs' impact on digital art. Jones opined that the NFT "should put an end to any romanticism about NFT art. It puts the consumer experience first and has absolutely nothing to do with empowering artists. It's all about the collector's ego." He also wrote that "The attitude says it all. Bored, emptied out, wrecked, and proud of it. That's how the NFT art investors all feel, apparently. And so they should. NFTs are not good for art. They are not liberating for artists."


title: Bored Ape

text: A "Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon" segment featuring Fallon and Paris Hilton showing off their Bored Apes was mocked by users on Twitter. "Wired" described the segment as having the "stiff, cheery cadence of a bad infomercial", and wrote that the clip going viral was "fueled by people making fun of how off-putting it was". Writing for the publication, Kate Knibbs wrote negatively of Bored Apes, and contrasted it to "Comedian", a 2019 artwork by Maurizio Cattelan of a banana duct taped to a wall, where the buyer received instructions for recreating the artwork rather than an actual banana:


title: Bored Ape

text: The Bored Ape Yacht Club, in contrast, is a grimmer kind of gimmick, one that parodies nothing. It uses certificates of authenticity, too, but with a crucial difference in intent. The certificate points back to a commodity, not an idea. It doesn't mock or even question the art world; instead it simply cashes in on it. The project's sense of humor is akin to a decal of Calvin from "Calvin & Hobbes" taking a piss. The crudeness is the point. Each ape is a misprized thing, bought and sold constantly.


title: Bored Ape

text: In late 2021, the popularity of Bored Apes spurred copycat NFT projects. PHAYC and Phunky Ape Yacht Club were two such projects centered around the same idea of selling NFTs of mirrored but otherwise identical images of Bored Ape NFTs. The OpenSea NFT marketplace banned both projects in December 2021. In February 2022, Bored Wukong was accused of copycat NFT avatars.


title: Bored Ape

text: In June 2022, Yuga Labs launched a lawsuit against Ryder Ripps on the grounds of him selling NFTs that infringe on the company's copyright. Although Yuga Labs filed this lawsuit in a US court, they did not seek copyright protection in the US and algorithmically generated images like BAYC are not subject to US copyright protection.


title: Bored Ape

text: Ripps is accused of false advertising and trademark infringement, with Yuga Labs requesting financial reimbursement and saying Ripps was executing a "calculated, intentional, and willful" plan to damage the reputation of the project. Ripps made a statement saying that the buyers of his NFTs were informed that they were not related to the BAYC project and that his NFTs were a satirical response to those of Yuga Labs. On August 15, 2022, he filed an anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss the lawsuit.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The Ninth Gate is a 1999 neo-noir horror thriller film directed, produced, and co-written by Roman Polanski. An international co-production between the United States, Portugal, France, and Spain, the film is loosely based upon Arturo Pérez-Reverte's 1993 novel "The Club Dumas". The plot involves authenticating a rare and ancient book that purportedly contains a magical secret for summoning the Devil.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The premiere showing was at San Sebastián, Spain, on 25 August 1999, a month before the 47th San Sebastian International Film Festival. Though critically and commercially unsuccessful in North America, where reviewers compared it unfavorably with Polanski's supernatural film "Rosemary's Baby" (1968), "The Ninth Gate" earned a worldwide gross of $58.4 million against a $38 million budget.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Dean Corso, a New York City rare book dealer, is hired by wealthy collector Boris Balkan. Balkan has acquired a copy of "The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows", a book by 17th-century author Aristide Torchia said to be able to summon the Devil. Torchia is alleged to have written the book in collaboration with the Devil, and only three copies survived when he and his works were burned for heresy. Balkan believes only one of the three is authentic and wants Corso to inspect the other two to determine which one. During his travels, Corso comes into contact with a mysterious woman ("The Girl") who appears to be following him.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Corso interviews Liana Telfer, the widow of Andrew Telfer who sold Balkan "The Nine Gates" shortly before killing himself. Telfer later seduces Corso, hoping he will sell the book to her. After they have sex, and he refuses to sell, she attacks him, and knocks him unconscious. The next day, Corso goes to a bookseller he had entrusted the book to and finds him hanged in his store like an engraving in "The Nine Gates". Corso retrieves the book and travels to Toledo, Spain, to speak to the Ceniza Brothers, book restorers who owned Balkan's copy before the Telfers. The two show him that, of the book's nine engravings, only six are signed "A.T."; the other three are signed "L.C.F." for Lucifer.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Corso travels to Sintra, Lisbon, Portugal, and meets with Victor Fargas who owns a copy of "The Nine Gates". Corso finds that three different engravings in his copy are signed "L.C.F.", and the engravings signed this way have subtle differences from those signed "A.T." Corso relays his findings to Balkan and Balkan orders him to acquire Fargas' copy. The next day the Girl takes Corso to see Fargas, who has been drowned; Corso retrieves Fargas's burnt copy from the fireplace and finds the three "L.C.F." engravings torn out. Corso goes to Paris, France, to investigate the third copy owned by Baroness Kessler. Wary of Corso and knowing he is employed by Balkan, she refuses him. Corso hides Balkan's book in his hotel room and tells Kessler about the "L.C.F." engravings, proposing that each copy has three that together make an authentic set of nine. Intrigued, Kessler allows Corso to look at her copy. Corso is attacked, and the Baroness is strangled to death and her library set on fire. Corso returns to his hotel and discovers Balkan's copy is missing, probably stolen by Liana.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The Girl and Corso track Liana to a manor where a Satanic cult are conducting a ritual using Balkan's book. Balkan interrupts the ceremony, takes his copy back, and strangles Liana to death. Corso abandons the Girl, presuming she was working for Balkan, and pursues Balkan but loses him. Corso finds a clue in Kessler's belongings that directs him to a remote castle, where Balkan is preparing to summon the Devil using the nine "L.C.F." engravings. He subdues Corso and forces him to watch as he performs the ritual; it apparently works and grants Balkan power and immunity to harm, and he immolates himself to demonstrate. However, the ritual did not work and Balkan begins to scream in pain. Corso retrieves the engravings and shoots Balkan. Entering Balkan's car, Corso is confronted by the Girl. The two have sex on the ground, the Girl astride Corso and backlit by the castle, now engulfed in flames. Her face appears to change as she grinds on top of Corso.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The Girl explains Balkan's ritual did not work because one of the engravings was forged. When they stop for gas she leaves, but gives Corso a note sending him to the Ceniza brothers. At their shop, Corso finds they have mysteriously vanished and the shop is being cleaned out. As workmen remove a large bookcase, a dust-covered paper floats down from the top. This is the authentic engraving, which depicts a woman who resembles the Girl riding atop a dragon-like beast in front of the burning castle. Corso appears returning to the castle with the gates opening up full of bright blinding light, implying the entrance of the Ninth Gate has opened for him.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Roman Polanski read the screenplay by Enrique Urbizu, an adaptation of the Spanish novel "El Club Dumas" ("The Club Dumas", 1993), by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. Impressed with the script, Polanski read the novel, liking it because he "saw so many elements that seemed good for a movie. It was suspenseful, funny, and there were a great number of secondary characters that are tremendously cinematic". Pérez-Reverte's novel, "El Club Dumas" features intertwined plots, so Polanski wrote his own adaptation with his usual partner, John Brownjohn ("Tess", "Pirates" and "Bitter Moon"). They deleted the novel's literary references and a sub-plot about Dean Corso's investigation of an original manuscript of a chapter of "The Three Musketeers", and concentrated upon Corso's pursuing the authentic copy of "The Nine Gates".


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Polanski approached the subject skeptically, saying, "I don't believe in the occult. I don't believe. Period." Yet he enjoyed the genre. "There [are] a great number of clichés of this type in "The Ninth Gate", which I tried to turn around a bit. You can make them appear serious on the surface, but you cannot help but laugh at them." The appeal of the film was that it featured "a mystery in which a book is the leading character" and its engravings "are also essential clues".


title: The Ninth Gate

text: In reading "El Club Dumas", Polanski pictured Johnny Depp as "Dean Corso", who joined the production as early as 1997, when he met Polanski at the Cannes Film Festival, while promoting "The Brave". Initially, he did not think Depp right as "Corso", because the character was forty years old (Depp at the time was only 34). He considered an older actor, but Depp persisted; he wanted to work with Roman Polanski.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The film press reported, around the time of the North American release of "The Ninth Gate", creative friction between Depp and Polanski. Depp said, "It's the director's job to push, to provoke things out of an actor". Polanski said of Depp, "He decided to play it rather flat, which wasn't how I envisioned it; and I didn't tell him it wasn't how I saw it". Visually, in the neo-noir genre style, rare-book dealer Dean Corso's disheveled grooming derives from Philip Marlowe, Raymond Chandler's quintessential literary private investigator.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Polanski cast Frank Langella as Boris Balkan based upon his performance as Clare Quilty in "Lolita" (1997). Barbara Jefford was a last-minute replacement for the German actress originally cast as the Baroness Frieda Kessler, who fell sick with pneumonia, and after a second actress proved unable to learn the character's dialogue; with only days' notice, Jefford learned her part, spoken with a German accent. Depp met his long-time partner Vanessa Paradis during the shooting.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: "The Ninth Gate" was filmed in France, Portugal, and Spain in the summer of 1998. Selected prominent buildings in the film are:


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The musical score for "The Ninth Gate" was composed by Wojciech Kilar, who previously collaborated with Polanski on "Death and the Maiden" (1994). The film's main theme is loosely based upon Havanaise, for violin and orchestra, by Camille Saint-Saëns; some of the score has a vocalization (specifically, a melodic aria) by Korean soprano Sumi Jo. A soundtrack album was released on 16 November 1999 via Silva Screen label.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: The premiere screening of "The Ninth Gate" was in San Sebastián, Spain, on 25 August 1999; in North America, it appeared in 1,586 cinemas during the 10 March 2000 weekend, earning a gross income of $6.6 million, and $18.6 million in total. Worldwide, it earned $58.4 million against a $38 million production budget.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 43% based on reviews from 94 critics, with an average rating of 5/10. The consensus reads, "Even though the film is stylish and atmospheric, critics say "The Ninth Gate" meanders aimlessly and is often ludicrous. And despite the advertising, there's hardly any chills." On Metacritic it has a score of 44 out of 100 based on reviews from 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade D− on scale of A to F.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: Roger Ebert said the ending was lackluster, "while at the end, I didn't yearn for spectacular special effects, I did wish for spectacular information — something awesome, not just a fade-to-white". In his review for "The New York Times", Elvis Mitchell said the movie was "about as scary as a sock-puppet re-enactment of "The Blair Witch Project", and not nearly as funny". "Entertainment Weekly" rated the film "D+", and Lisa Schwarzbaum said it had an "aroma of middle-brow, art-house Euro-rot, a whiff of decay and "hauteur" in a film not even a star as foxed, and foxy, as Johnny Depp, himself, could save". In the "Los Angeles Times", Kenneth Turan said the film was "too laid-back, and unconcerned about the pacing of its story to be satisfying", because "a thriller that's not high-powered, is an intriguing concept, in reality it can hold our attention for only so long". In the "Village Voice", J. Hoberman said the film was "barely releasable hokum, stuffed with cheesy blah-blah". European reviews were generally more attentive and praised the film's pace and irony.


title: The Ninth Gate

text: In "Sight and Sound" magazine, Phillip Strick said it was "not particularly liked at first outing — partly because Johnny Depp, in fake grey temples, personifies the odious Corso of the book a little too accurately — the film is intricately well-made, deserves a second chance, despite its disintegrations, and, in time, will undoubtedly acquire its own coven of heretical fans".


title: The Ninth Gate

text: In "Time" magazine, Richard Corliss said that "The Ninth Gate" was Polanski's most accessible effort "since fleeing the U.S. soon after "Chinatown"".


title: The Ninth Gate

text: In the "San Francisco Chronicle", Bob Graham said that "Depp is the best reason to see Polanski's satanic thriller" and "Polanski's sly sense of "film-noir" conventions pokes fun at the genre, while, at the same time, honoring it".


title: The Ninth Gate

text: After the release of "The Ninth Gate", Artisan sued Polanski for taking more than $1 million from the budget, refunds of France's value-added tax that he did not give to the completion bond company guaranteeing Artisan Entertainment a completed film.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Sukhoi Su-30MKI (NATO reporting name: Flanker-H) is a twinjet multirole air superiority fighter developed by Russia's Sukhoi and built under licence by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF). A variant of the Sukhoi Su-30, it is a heavy, all-weather, long-range fighter.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: Development of the variant started after India signed a deal with Russia in 2000 to manufacture 140 Su-30 fighter jets. The first Russian-made Su-30MKI variant was accepted into the Indian Air Force in 2002, while the first Su-30MKI assembled in India entered service with the IAF in 2004. The IAF has nearly 260 Su-30MKIs in inventory as of January 2020. The Su-30MKI is expected to form the backbone of the Indian Air Force's fighter fleet to 2020 and beyond.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The aircraft is tailor-made for Indian specifications and integrates Indian systems and avionics as well as French and Israeli sub-systems. It has abilities similar to the Sukhoi Su-35 with which it shares many features and components.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI was designed by Russia's Sukhoi Corporation beginning in 1995 and built under licence by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The Su-30MKI is derived from the Sukhoi Su-27 and has a fusion of technology from the Su-37 demonstrator and Su-30 program, being more advanced than the Su-30MK and the Chinese Su-30MKK/MK2. Russia's Defence Ministry was impressed with the type's performance envelope and ordered 30 Su-30SMs, a localised Su-30MKI, for the Russian Air Force. It features state of the art avionics developed by Russia, India and Israel for display, navigation, targeting and electronic warfare; France and South Africa provided other avionics.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: After two years of evaluation and negotiations, on 30 November 1996, India signed a US$1.462 billion deal with Sukhoi for 50 Russian-produced Su-30MKIs in five batches. The first batch were eight Su-30MKs, the basic version of Su-30. The second batch were to be 10 Su-30MKIs with French and Israeli avionics. The third batch were to be 10 Su-30MKIs featuring canard foreplanes. The fourth batch of 12 Su-30MKIs and final batch of 10 Su-30MKIs were to have the AL-31FP turbofans.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In October 2000, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed for Indian licence-production of 140 Su-30MKIs; in December 2000, a deal was sealed at Russia's Irkutsk aircraft plant for full technology transfer. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has ordered 272 aircraft, of which 50 were to be delivered by Russia in 2002-2004 and 2007. The rest of 222 planes are to be produced under license at HAL's Indian facilities in 2004. The first Nasik-built Su-30MKIs were to be delivered by 2004, with staggered production until 2017–18. In November 2002, the delivery schedule was expedited with production to be completed by 2015. An estimated 920 AL-31FP turbofans are to be manufactured at HAL's Koraput Division, while the mainframe and other accessories are to be manufactured at HAL's Lucknow and Hyderabad divisions. Final integration and test flights of the aircraft are carried out at HAL's Nasik Division. Four manufacturing phases were outlined with progressively increasing Indian content: Phase I, II, III and IV. In phase I, HAL manufactured the Su-30MKIs from knocked-down kits, transitioning to semi knocked-down kits in phase II and III; in phase IV, HAL produced aircraft from scratch from 2013 onwards.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In 2007, another order of 40 Su-30MKIs was placed. In 2009, the planned fleet strength was to be 230 aircraft. In 2008, Samtel HAL Display Systems (SHDS), a joint venture between Samtel Display Systems and HAL, won a contract to develop and manufacture multi-function avionics displays for the MKI. A helmet mounted display, Topsight-I, based on technology from Thales and developed by SHDS will be integrated on the Su-30MKI in the next upgrade. In March 2010, it was reported that India and Russia were discussing a contract for 42 more Su-30MKIs. In June 2010, it was reported that the Cabinet Committee on Security had cleared the deal and that the 42 aircraft would be in service by 2018.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: By August 2010, the cost increased to $4.3 billion or $102 million each. This increased unit cost compared to the previous unit cost of $40 million in 2007, has led to the rumours that these latest order of 42 Su-30MKIs are for the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and these aircraft will be optimised and hardwired for nuclear weapons delivery. The SFC had previously submitted a proposal to the Indian Defence Ministry for setting up two dedicated squadrons of fighters consisting of 40 aircraft capable of delivering nuclear weapons.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: HAL expected that indigenisation of the Su-30MKI programme would be completed by 2010; V. Balakrishnan, general manager of the Aircraft Manufacturing Division stated that "HAL will achieve 100 per cent indigenisation of the Sukhoi aircraft – from the production of raw materials to the final plane assembly". As of 2017, HAL manufactures more than 80% of the aircraft. On 11 October 2012, the Indian Government confirmed plans to buy another 42 Su-30MKI aircraft. On 24 December 2012, India ordered assembly kits for 42 Su-30MKIs by signing a deal during President Putin's visit to India. This increases India's order total to 272 Su-30MKIs.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In June 2018, India has reportedly decided not to order any further Su-30s as they feel its cost of maintenance is very high compared to Western aircraft.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In June 2020, India decided to place an order for 12 more Su-30MKI aircraft along with 21 MiG-29s. The Su-30MKI order is to compensate for losses due to crashes to maintain the sanctioned strength of 272 Su-30MKIs. The MiG-29 order was placed to form a fourth MiG-29 squadron to bolster depleted IAF strength. The MiGs were ordered despite being an older platform since they were deliverable within a 2-3-year timeframe, because they were built for an order that was previously canceled and since they were very reasonably priced compared to newer aircraft.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In 2004, India signed a deal with Russia to domestically produce the Novator K-100 missile, designed to shoot down airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) and C4ISTAR aircraft, for the Su-30MKI. Although not initially designed to carry nuclear or strategic weapons, India has considered integrating an air-launched version of the nuclear-capable Nirbhay.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In May 2010, India Today reported that Russia had won a contract to upgrade 40 Su-30MKIs with new radars, onboard computers, electronic warfare systems and the ability to carry the BrahMos cruise missile. The first two prototypes with the "Super-30" upgrade will be delivered to the IAF in 2012, after which the upgrades will be performed on the last batch of 40 production aircraft. The Brahmos missile integrated on the Su-30MKI will provide the capability to attack ground targets from stand-off ranges of around 300 km. On 25 June 2016, HAL conducted the first test flight of a Su-30MKI fitted with a BrahMos-A missile from Nashik, India. The first air launch of BrahMos from a Su-30MKI was successfully carried out on 22 November 2017.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: India was planning to upgrade its Su-30MKI fighters with Russian Phazotron Zhuk-AE Active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars. The X band radar can track 30 aerial targets in the track-while-scan mode and engage six targets simultaneously in attack mode. AESA technology offers improved performance and reliability compared with traditional mechanically scanned array radars. On 18 August 2010, India's Minister of Defence A K Antony stated the current estimated cost for the upgrade was and the aircraft are likely to be upgraded in phases beginning in 2012.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Indian Defence Ministry proposed several upgrades for the Su-30MKI to the Indian Parliament, including the fitting of Russian Phazotron Zhuk-AE AESA radars starting in 2012. During MMRCA trials the Zhuk-AE AESA radar demonstrated significant capabilities, including ground-mapping modes and the ability to detect and track aerial targets. At the 2011 MAKS air-show, Irkut chairman Alexy Fedorov offered an upgrade package with an improved radar, and reduced radar signature to the Indian fleet to make them "Super Sukhois".


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In 2012, upgrades of the earlier 80 Su-30MKIs involves equipping them with stand-off missiles with a range of 300 km; a request for information (ROI) was issued for such weapons. In 2011, India issued a request for information to MBDA for the integration of the Brimstone ground attack missile and the long-range Meteor air-to-air missile.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In February 2017, it was reported that the planes would be upgraded with AL-41F turbofan engines, same as the ones on Sukhoi Su-35. In August 2017, the Indian government cleared a proposal of to equip the planes with new reconnaissance pods.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: India is planning to increase Su-30MKIs BVR engagement capability by arming its entire fleet with the indigenous Astra BVR missile having a range of 110 km and Israeli Derby after it was found that the R-77 active-radar homing BVR missile has inadequate performance. In September 2019, the Astra was in multiple user-trials by Indian Air Force to validate its lethality for the Su-30MKI.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI is a highly integrated twin-finned aircraft. The airframe is constructed of titanium and high-strength aluminium alloys. The engine intake ramps and nacelles are fitted with trouser fairings to provide a continuous streamlined profile between the nacelles and the tail beams. The fins and horizontal tail consoles are attached to tail beams. The central beam section between the engine nacelles consists of the equipment compartment, fuel tank and the brake parachute container. The fuselage head is of semi-monocoque construction and includes the cockpit, radar compartments and the avionics bay.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: Su-30MKI aerodynamic configuration is a longitudinal triplane with relaxed stability. The canard increases the aircraft lift ability and deflects automatically to allow high angle of attack (AoA) flights allowing it to perform Pugachev's Cobra. The integral aerodynamic configuration combined with thrust vectoring results in extremely capable manoeuvrability, taking off and landing characteristics. This high agility allows rapid deployment of weapons in any direction as desired by the crew. The canard notably assists in controlling the aircraft at large angles-of-attack and bringing it to a level flight condition. The aircraft has a fly-by-wire (FBW) with quadruple redundancy. Dependent on flight conditions, signals from the control stick position transmitter or the FCS may be coupled to remote control amplifiers and combined with feedback signals from acceleration sensors and rate gyros. The resultant control signals are coupled to the high-speed electro-hydraulic actuators of the elevators, rudders and the canard. The output signals are compared and, if the difference is significant, the faulty channel is disconnected. FBW is based on a stall warning and barrier mechanism which prevents stalls through dramatic increases of control stick pressure, allowing a pilot to effectively control the aircraft without exceeding the angle of attack and acceleration limitations. Although the maximum angle of attack is limited by the canards, the FBW acts as an additional safety mechanism.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI has a range of 3,000 km with internal fuel which ensures a 3.75 hour combat mission. Also, it has an in-flight refueling (IFR) probe that retracts beside the cockpit during normal operation. The air refueling system increases the flight duration up to 10 hours with a range of 3,000 km combat radius. Su-30MKIs can also use the Cobham 754 buddy refueling pods.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The displays include a customised version of the Israeli Elbit Su 967 head-up display (HUD) consisting of bi-cubic phase conjugated holographic displays and seven multifunction liquid-crystal displays, six 127 mm × 127 mm and one 152 mm × 152 mm. Flight information is displayed on four LCD displays which include one for piloting and navigation, a tactical situation indicator, and two for display systems information including operating modes and overall status. Variants of this HUD have also been chosen for the IAF's Mikoyan MiG-27 and SEPECAT Jaguar upgrades for standardisation. The rear cockpit has a larger monochrome display for air-to-surface missile guidance.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI on-board health and usage monitoring system (HUMS) monitors almost every aircraft system and sub-system, and can also act as an engineering data recorder. From 2010, indigenously designed and built HUDs and Multi-Function Displays (MFD) were produced by the Delhi-based Samtel Group Display Systems.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The crew are provided with zero-zero NPP Zvezda K-36DM ejection seats. The rear seat is raised for better visibility. The cockpit is provided with containers to store food and water reserves, a waste disposal system and extra oxygen bottles. The K-36DM ejection seat is inclined at 30°, to help the pilot resist aircraft accelerations in air combat.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The forward-facing NIIP N011M Bars (Panther) is a powerful integrated passive electronically scanned array radar. The N011M is a digital multi-mode dual frequency band radar. The N011M can function in air-to-air and air-to-land/sea mode simultaneously while being tied into a high-precision laser-inertial or GPS navigation system. It is equipped with a modern digital weapons control system as well as anti-jamming features. N011M has a 400 km search range and a maximum 200 km tracking range, and 60 km in the rear hemisphere. The radar can track 15 air targets and engage 4 simultaneously. These targets can even include cruise missiles and motionless helicopters. The Su-30MKI can function as a "mini-AWACS" as a director or command post for other aircraft. The target co-ordinates can be transferred automatically to at least four other aircraft. The radar can detect ground targets such as tanks at 40–50 km. The Bars radar will be replaced by Zhuk-AESA in all Su-30MKI aircraft.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: OLS-30 laser-optical Infra-red search and track includes a day and night FLIR capability and is used in conjunction with the helmet mounted sighting system. The OLS-30 is a combined IRST/LR device using a cooled, broad waveband sensor. Detection range is up to 90 km, while the laser ranger is effective to 3.5 km. Targets are displayed on the same LCD display as the radar. Israeli LITENING targeting pod is used to target laser guided munitions. The original Litening pod includes a long range FLIR, a TV camera, laser spot tracker to pick up target designated by other aircraft or ground forces, and an electro-optical point and inertial tracker, which enables engagement of the target even when partly obscured by clouds or countermeasures; it also integrates a laser range-finder and flash-lamp powered laser designator for the delivery of laser-guided bombs, cluster and general-purpose bomb.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The aircraft is fitted with a satellite navigation system (A-737 GPS compatible), which permits it to make flights in all weather, day and night. The navigation complex includes the high accuracy SAGEM Sigma-95 integrated global positioning system and ring laser gyroscope inertial navigation system. Phase 3 of further development of the MKI, will integrate avionic systems being developed for the Indo-Russian Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft programme.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: Sukhoi Su-30MKI has electronic counter-measure systems. The RWR system is of Indian design, developed by India's DRDO, called "Tarang", ("Wave" in English). It has direction finding capability and is known to have a programmable threat library. The RWR is derived from work done on an earlier system for India's MiG-23BNs known as the Tranquil, which is now superseded by the more advanced Tarang series. Elta EL/M-8222 a self-protection jammer developed by Israel Aircraft Industries is the MKI's standard EW pod, which the Israeli Air Force uses on its F-15s. The ELTA El/M-8222 Self Protection Pod is a power-managed jammer, air-cooled system with an ESM receiver integrated into the pod. The pod contains an antenna on the forward and aft ends, which receive the hostile RF signal and after processing deliver the appropriate response.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI is powered by two Lyulka-Saturn AL-31FP turbofans, each rated at 12,500 kgf (27,550 lbf) of full after-burning thrust, which enable speeds of up to Mach 2 in horizontal flight and a rate of climb of 230 m/s. The mean time between overhaul is reportedly 1,000 hours with a full-life span of 3,000 hours; the titanium nozzle has a mean time between overhaul of 500 hours. In early 2015, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar stated before Parliament that the AL-31FP had suffered numerous failures, between the end of 2012 and early 2015, a total of 69 Su-30MKI engine-related failures had occurred; commons causes were bearing failures due to metal fatigue and low oil pressure, in response several engine modifications were made to improve lubrication, as well as the use of higher quality oil and adjustments to the fitting of bearings.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Su-30MKI's AL-31FP powerplant built on the earlier AL-31FU, adding two-plane thrust vectoring nozzles are mounted 32 degrees outward to longitudinal engine axis (i.e. in the horizontal plane) and can be deflected ±15 degrees in one plane. The canting allows the aircraft to produce both roll and yaw by vectoring each engine nozzle differently; this allows the aircraft to create thrust vectoring moments about all three rotational axes, pitch, yaw and roll. Engine thrust is adjusted via a conventional engine throttle lever as opposed to a strain-gauge engine control stick. The aircraft is controlled by a standard control stick. The pilot can activate a switch for performing difficult maneuvers; while this is enabled, the computer automatically determines the deflection angles of the swiveling nozzles and aerodynamic surfaces.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Sukhoi Su-30MKI is the most potent fighter jet in service with the Indian Air Force in the late 2000s. The MKIs are often fielded by the IAF in bilateral and multilateral air exercises. India exercised its Su-30MKIs against the Royal Air Force's Tornado ADVs in October 2006. This was the first large-scale bilateral aerial exercise with any foreign air force during which the IAF used its Su-30MKIs extensively. This exercise was also the first in 43 years with the RAF. During the exercise, the RAF Air Chief Marshal Glenn Torpy was given permission by the IAF to fly the MKI. RAF's Air Vice Marshal, Christopher Harper, praised the MKI's dogfight ability, calling it "absolutely masterful in dogfights".


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In July 2007, the Indian Air Force fielded the Su-30MKI during the "Indra-Dhanush" exercise with Royal Air Force's Eurofighter Typhoon. This was the first time that the two fighters took part in such an exercise. The IAF did not allow their pilots to use the radar of the MKIs during the exercise so as to protect the highly classified N011M Bars radar system. Also in the exercise were RAF Tornado F3s and a Hawk. RAF Tornado pilots were candid in their admission of the Su-30MKI's superior manoeuvring in the air, and the IAF pilots were impressed by the Typhoon's agility.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In 2004, India sent Su-30MKs, an earlier variant of the Su-30MKI, to take part in war games with the United States Air Force (USAF) during "Cope India 04". The results have been widely publicised, with the Indians winning "90% of the mock combat missions" against the USAF's F-15C. The parameters of the exercise heavily favored the IAF; none of the six 3rd Wing F-15Cs were equipped with the newer long-range, active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars and, at India's request, the U.S. agreed to mock combat at 3-to-1 odds and without the use of simulated long-range, radar-guided AIM-120 AMRAAMs for beyond-visual-range kills. In Cope India 05, the Su-30MKIs reportedly beat the USAF's F-16s.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In July 2008, the IAF sent 6 Su-30MKIs and 2 Il-78MKI aerial-refueling tankers, to participate in the Red Flag exercise. The IAF again did not allow their pilots to use the radar of the MKIs during the exercise so as to protect the highly classified N011M Bars. In October 2008, a video surfaced on the internet which featured a USAF colonel, Terrence Fornof, criticising Su-30MKI's performance against the F-15C, engine serviceability issues, and high friendly kill rate during the Red Flag exercise. Several of his claims were later rebutted by the Indian side and the USAF also distanced itself from his remarks.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: In June 2010, India and France began the fourth round of their joint air exercises, "Garuda", at the Istres Air Base in France. During Garuda, the IAF and the French Air Force were engaged in various missions ranging from close combat engagement of large forces, slow mover protection, protecting and engaging high value aerial assets. This exercise marked the first time the Su-30MKI took part in a military exercise in France.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The Indian Air Force first took part in the United States Air Force's Red Flag exercise in 2008. Participating in Red Flag costs the IAF 100 crore (US$17.5 million) each time. To reduce costs, the IAF decided to take part once every five years. The IAF is taking part in the Red Flag exercise in July 2013, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, United States. For the exercise, it is dispatching eight Su-30MKIs, two Lockheed C-130J Hercules tactical aircraft, two Ilyushin Il-78 (NATO reporting name "Midas") mid-air refueling tankers, one Ilyushin Il-76 (NATO reporting name "Candid") heavy-lift aircraft, and over 150 personnel.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: The IAF again fielded its MKIs in the Garuda-V exercise with France in June 2014, where they manoeuvred in mixed groups with other IAF aircraft and French Rafales.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: On 21 July 2015, India and UK began the bilateral exercise named "Indradhanush" with aircraft operating from three Royal Air Force bases. The exercises included both Beyond Visual Range (BVR) and Within Visual Range (WVR) exercises between the Su-30MKI and Eurofighter Typhoon. Indian media reported the results were in favour of the IAF with a score of 12–0 at WVR engagements. They also claim that the IAF Su-30MKIs held an edge over the Typhoons in BVR engagements though not in as dominating a manner. The RAF issued a statement that the results being reported by the Indian media did not reflect the results of the exercise. According to Aviation International News "In close combat, thrust vector control on the Flankers more than compensated for the greater thrust-to-weight ratio of the Typhoon".


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: On 26 February 2019, four Sukhoi Su-30MKIs escorted Mirage 2000s into the Pakistani airspace for the Balakot airstrike on an alleged Jaish-e-Mohammed camp. The following day, two Su-30MKIs on combat air patrol were reportedly attacked by multiple Pakistani F-16s using AMRAAM missiles. The missiles were successfully dodged according to India. The debris of an AMRAAM missile was later recovered and displayed by the IAF to disprove the Pakistani claim of not using the F-16. Pakistani media claimed that PAF had downed an Indian Sukhoi Su-30MKI in the aerial skirmish. The Indian Air Force stated that all dispatched Sukhoi aircraft returned safely with the only confirmed loss was a MiG-21. On 8 October 2019, during the Indian Air Force Day celebrations, the IAF reportedly flew the Su-30MKI that Pakistan claimed to have shot down.


title: Sukhoi Su-30MKI

text: On 18 March 2022, it was reported that India ordered 12 Su-30MKIs. In May 2022, the Indian government suspended the Su-30MKI order due to concerns over Moscow's ability to deliver parts to Hindustan Aeronautics and issues related to payment transfers.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Back to the Future Part III is a 1990 American science fiction Western film and the final installment of the "Back to the Future" trilogy. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, and stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Steenburgen, Thomas F. Wilson, and Lea Thompson. The film continues immediately following "Back to the Future Part II" (1989); while stranded in 1955 during his time travel adventures, Marty McFly (Fox) discovers that his friend Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd), trapped in 1885, was killed by Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen (Wilson), Biff's great-grandfather. Marty travels to 1885 to rescue Doc and return once again to 1985, but matters are complicated when Doc falls in love with Clara Clayton (Steenburgen).


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: "Back to the Future Part III" was filmed in California and Arizona, and was produced on a $40 million budget back-to-back with "Part II". "Part III" was released in the United States on May 25, 1990, six months after the previous installment, and grossed $245 million worldwide during its initial run, making it the sixth-highest-grossing film of 1990. The film received a positive response from critics, who noted it as an improvement over its predecessor.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: In 1955, moments after witnessing Emmett "Doc" Brown disappear in his DeLorean, Marty McFly learns that Doc was sent to 1885. Using information from Doc's 1885 letter, Marty and the 1955 Doc find and repair the DeLorean so Marty can return to 1985. However after finding it, Marty comes across a tombstone with Doc's name, with the inscription stating that Doc was shot by Biff Tannen's great-grandfather, Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen, six days after writing the letter.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Despite the letter's warnings, Marty travels back to 1885 to save Doc, arriving amidst a cavalry pursuit of Native Americans, tearing the car's fuel line in the process. Chased by a bear, he is knocked out and found by his Irish-born great-great-grandparents Seamus and Maggie McFly, who allow him to stay for the night. The next morning, under the alias Clint Eastwood, he arrives in Hill Valley but runs afoul of Buford and his gang. Buford tries hanging Marty, but Doc rescues him. Doc agrees to leave 1885 after learning his fate, but without gasoline, the DeLorean cannot reach its required . He thus proposes using a steam locomotive to push the DeLorean to that speed.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: While inspecting a rail spur, Doc saves the town’s new schoolteacher Clara Clayton from falling into the ravine, averting her death from the original timeline. They fall in love at first sight and form a close relationship. At a town festival for the courthouse, Buford tries shooting Doc, but Marty thwarts him. Buford then challenges him to a showdown in two days; an angry Marty accepts, believing that he and Doc would have left by then. Doc urges Marty not to react to provocation, letting slip that Marty has a life changing accident in the future.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Although he is reluctant to return to 1985, Doc eventually visits Clara to end their relationship and bid her goodbye. However, feeling insulted, she dismisses his story about being from the future. Despondent, he goes for a binge. In the morning, Buford arrives for Marty, who sees his alias appear in the photograph of the tombstone and refuses to duel. Doc passes out after downing just one shot and eventually revives but is taken hostage by Buford's gang, forcing Marty into the duel. Fooling Buford into believing he was fatally shot, Marty knocks him into a wagon of manure. Buford is promptly arrested for an earlier robbery.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: On the train to San Francisco, Clara learns how heartbroken Doc is and runs back to town. She finds the model of the time machine at his shop. Realizing Doc was telling the truth, she heads back to intercept him. Using a stolen locomotive, Doc and Marty push the DeLorean along the spur line. Clara boards the locomotive and tries to reach the car, but she falls, hanging by her dress. Marty, in the DeLorean, passes his hoverboard to Doc, and he uses it to save Clara and carry her to safety. Marty hits 88 mph and vanishes as the locomotive falls off the unfinished bridge.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Arriving in 1985, Marty escapes from the powerless DeLorean just before an oncoming freight train destroys it. Reuniting with Jennifer, Marty declines a street race with Douglas J. Needles, thus avoiding the future accident Doc warned him about. Jennifer opens the fax message she kept from 2015 and watches as the text regarding Marty's firing disappears.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: As Marty and Jennifer examine the DeLorean wreckage, a steam locomotive suddenly appears, operated by Doc, Clara, and their children. Doc gives Marty a photo of them standing next to the town clock in 1885. When Jennifer asks Doc about the blank fax, he says it means that their future has not yet been written and encourages them to make it a good one. Doc and his family bid farewell and fly off in the locomotive to an unknown time.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The origins of the western theme for "Back to the Future Part III" lie in the production of the original film. During filming for the original, director Zemeckis asked Michael J. Fox what time period he would like to see. Fox replied that he wanted to visit the Old West and meet cowboys. Zemeckis and writer/producer Bob Gale were intrigued by the idea, but held it off until "Part III". Rather than use existing sets, the filmmakers built the 1885 Hill Valley from scratch. The western scenes were filmed on location in Oak Park, California, and Monument Valley. Some of the location shooting for the 1885 Hill Valley was done in Jamestown, California, and on a purpose-built set at the Red Hills Ranch near Sonora, California. Some of the train scenes were filmed at Railtown 1897 State Historic Park, a heritage line in Jamestown. Whereas the original film played to a more materialistic idea of success, Zemeckis considered "Part III" more of a "human journey" with spiritual overtones.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The shooting of the "Back to the Future" sequels, which were shot back-to-back throughout 1989, reunited much of the crew of the original. The films were shot over the course of 11 months, save for a three-week hiatus between filming of "Parts II" and "III" and concluded in January 1990. The most grueling part was editing "Part II" while filming "Part III", and Zemeckis bore the brunt of the process over a three-week period. While Zemeckis was shooting most of the train sequences in Sonora, Gale was in Los Angeles supervising the final dub of "Part II". Zemeckis would wrap photography and board a private plane to Burbank, where Gale and engineers would greet him on the dubbing stage with dinner. He would oversee the reels completed that day, and make changes where needed. Afterwards, he would retire to the Sheraton Universal Hotel for the night. The following morning, Zemeckis would drive to the Burbank Airport, board a flight back to the set in Northern California, and continue to shoot the film.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Although the schedule for most of the personnel involved was grueling, the actors found the remote location for "Part III" relaxing, compared to shooting its predecessor.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The role of Clara Clayton was written with Mary Steenburgen in mind. When she received the script, however, she was reluctant to commit to the film until her children, who loved "Part I", 'hounded' her. Lloyd shared his first on-screen kiss with Steenburgen in "Part III". The Hill Valley Festival Dance scene proved to be the most dangerous for Lloyd and Steenburgen; overzealous dancing left Steenburgen with a torn ligament in her foot.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The film also starred veteran western film actors Pat Buttram, Harry Carey Jr., and Dub Taylor, as three "saloon old timers". The inclusion of these noticeable Western actors was promoted in several documentaries about the film as well as the behind-the-scenes documentary of the DVD and in the obituary of one of the actors. The musicians of the Old West–style band in the film were played by ZZ Top.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Shooting a film set in the Old West was appealing to the stuntmen, who were all experienced horse riders. "We had every great stuntman in Hollywood wanting to work on "Part III"," recalled Gale in 2002. Thomas F. Wilson, who played Buford Tannen, chose to perform his own stunts and spent a great deal of time learning to ride a horse and throw his lariat. Filming was halted when Fox's father died and when his son was born.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Alan Silvestri, through his longtime collaboration with Zemeckis, returned to compose the score for "Back to the Future Part III". Rather than dictate how the music should sound, Zemeckis directed Silvestri as he would an actor, seeking to evoke emotion and treating every piece of music like a character.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The photography in "Part III" was a "dream" for cinematographer Dean Cundey, who agreed with much of the crew in his excitement to shoot a western. The filmmakers sought a bright, colorful picture for each scene, with a hint of sepia tone in certain shots. Zemeckis wished to create a spectacular climax to the film. He coordinated the actors, a live 4-6-0 ten wheeler steam locomotive (the Sierra Railway 3), pyrotechnics, and special effects, and countless technicians all at once. As they had done with the previous two films in the trilogy, the visual effects for "Part III" were managed by effects company Industrial Light & Magic; the head of its animation department, Wes Takahashi, returned to once again animate the DeLorean's time travel sequences.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: On November 8, 1990, MCA/Universal Home Video released "Back to the Future Part III" on VHS and again on December 17, 2002 on DVD. It debuted on Blu-ray in 2010 for the film's 20th anniversary, followed by a second Blu-ray remaster in 2015 for the film's 25th anniversary and a 4K Blu-ray remaster in 2020 for the film's 30th anniversary.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The soundtrack was released under Varèse Sarabande on May 29, 1990 and features most of the score by Alan Silvestri and the orchestral version of the song "Doubleback" performed at the festival in 1885 during the film. A 2-disc special edition was released on October 12, 2015 in commemoration of the film's 25th anniversary, which includes the original score (26 tracks) on disc one and an arrangement of alternate cues and source music on a second disc.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The film grossed $23 million in its first weekend of U.S. release and $87.6 million altogether in U.S. box office receipts (or about $ million in dollars) – $246 million worldwide.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes reported approval rating based on reviews, with an average rating of . The site's critical consensus reads: ""Back to the Future Part III" draws the trilogy to a satisfying close with a simpler, sweeter round of time-travel antics." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, same as the second installment.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Kim Newman of "Empire" gave the film four out of five stars, saying that the film "restores heart interest of the first film and has a satisfying complete storyline". He praised Michael J. Fox for "keeping the plot on the move," and mentioned that Christopher Lloyd and Mary Steenburgen's romance was "funny". He said that the film's ending was the "neatest of all," and it "features one of the best time machines in the cinema, promising that this is indeed the very last in the series and neatly wrapping it up for everybody.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Leonard Maltin preferred this film to the first two, giving it three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying it "offers great fun, dazzling special effects, and imagination to spare. There's real movie magic at work here." Michael McWhertor of the website "Polygon" wrote that while the film was not better than the original entry in the series, it is nonetheless "leagues better than the second"; he praised the film's comedic and romantic elements and commended Thomas F. Wilson's performance as "Mad Dog" Tannen.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Roger Ebert of the "Chicago Sun-Times" gave the film two-and-a-half out of four stars. He said that the film's western motifs are "a sitcom version that looks exactly as if it were built on a back lot somewhere". Although Vincent Canby of "The New York Times" praised Christopher Lloyd's performance in the film, he also said that the film "looks as if it could be the beginning of a continuing television series". He complained that the film is "so sweet-natured and bland that it is almost instantly forgettable".


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Commentators notice parallels between the films "Time After Time" and "Back to the Future Part III". Mary Steenburgen has said:


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: Actually, I've played the same scene in that film (Time After Time) and in (BTTF) 'Part III.. I've had a man from a different time period tell me that he's in love with me, but he has to go back to his own time. My response in both cases is, of course, disbelief, and I order them out of my life. Afterwards, I find out I was wrong and that, in fact, the man is indeed from another time, and I go after him (them) to profess my love. It's a pretty strange feeling to find yourself doing the same scene, so many years apart, for the second time in your career.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: The casting of Steenburgen for "Back to the Future Part III" appears to be deliberately intended to mirror the earlier role. In "Time After Time", the woman lives in the 20th century and the time traveler is from the 19th. In "Back to the Future Part III", the woman inhabits the 19th century and the time traveler is from the 20th. In both films, the woman eventually goes back with the time traveler to live in his own time period.


title: Back to the Future Part III

text: In 1990, the film won a Saturn Award for Best Music for Alan Silvestri and a Best Supporting Actor award for Thomas F. Wilson. In 2003, it received an AOL Movies DVD Premiere Award for Best Special Edition of the Year, an award based on consumer online voting.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Kurdistan Region (; ), abbr. KRI, is an autonomous region in Iraq comprising the four Kurdish-majority governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, and Halabja, and bordering Iran, Syria, and Turkey. The Kurdistan Region encompasses most of Iraqi Kurdistan but excludes the disputed territories of Northern Iraq, contested between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the central Iraqi government in Baghdad since 1992 when autonomy was realized. The Kurdistan Region Parliament is situated in Erbil, but the constitution of the Kurdistan Region declares the disputed city of Kirkuk to be the capital of the Kurdistan Region. When the Iraqi Army withdrew from most of the disputed areas in mid-2014 following the Islamic State’s invasion of Iraq, Kurdish Forces entered the areas and held control there until Iraq retook the areas in October 2017.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Throughout the 20th century, Kurds in Iraq oscillated between fighting for autonomy and for independence. Kurds experienced Arabization and genocide at the hands of Ba'athist Iraq. The Iraqi no-fly zones over most of Iraqi Kurdistan after March 1991 gave the Kurds a chance to experiment with self-governance and the autonomous region was "de facto" established. The Baghdad government only recognized the autonomy of the Kurdistan Region after the fall of Saddam Hussein, with a new Iraqi constitution in 2005. A non-binding independence referendum was passed in September 2017, to mixed reactions internationally. The Kurdistan Region largely escaped the privations of the last years of Saddam Hussein's rule and the chaos that followed his ousting in 2003, and built a parliamentary democracy with a growing economy.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Before Iraq became an independent state in 1923, the Iraqi Kurds had already begun their independence struggle from the British Mandatory Iraq with the Mahmud Barzanji revolts, which were subsequently crushed by the United Kingdom after a bombing campaign against Kurdish civilians by the Royal Air Force. Nonetheless, the Kurdish struggle persisted and the Barzani tribe had by the early 1920s gained momentum for the Kurdish nationalist cause and would become pivotal in the Kurdish-Iraqi wars throughout the 20th century. In 1943, the Barzani chief Mustafa Barzani began raiding Iraqi police stations in Kurdistan, which led the Baghdad government to deploy 30,000 troops to the region. The Iraqi Kurdish leadership fled to Iran in 1945. There, Mustafa Barzani founded the Kurdistan Democratic Party, and Iran and the Soviet Union began assisting the Kurdish rebels with arms. Israel began assisting the Kurdish rebels in the early 1960s.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: From 1961 to 1970, the Kurds fought the Iraqi government in the First Iraqi–Kurdish War, which resulted in the Iraqi–Kurdish Autonomy Agreement. But simultaneously with its promise of Kurdish autonomy, the Iraqi government began ethnic cleansing Kurdish-populated areas, to reduce the size of the autonomous entity which a census would determine. This mistrust provoked the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War between 1974 and 1975, which resulted in a serious defeat for the Iraqi Kurds (see Algiers Accord) and forced all of the rebels to flee once more to Iran.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The more left-leaning Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) was founded in 1975 by Jalal Talabani and regenerated the Kurdish insurgency with guerrilla warfare tactics as the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) was slowly recovering from their defeat. However, the Kurdish insurgency became entangled in the Iran–Iraq War from 1980 onwards. During the first years of the war in the early 1980s, the Iraqi government tried to accommodate the Kurds in order to focus on the war against Iran. In 1983, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan agreed to cooperate with Baghdad, but the Kurdistan Democratic Party remained opposed. In 1983, Saddam Hussein signed an autonomy agreement with Jalal Talabani of the PUK, though Saddam later reneged on the agreement.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: By 1985, the PUK and KDP had joined forces, and Iraqi Kurdistan saw widespread guerrilla warfare up to the end of the war. On 15 March 1988, PUK forces captured the town of Halabja near the Iranian border and inflicted heavy losses among Iraqi soldiers. The Iraqis retaliated the following day by chemically bombing the town, killing about 5,000 civilians. This led the Americans and the Europeans to implement the Iraqi no-fly zones in March 1991 to protect the Kurds, thereby facilitating Kurdish autonomy amid the vacuum and the first Kurdish elections were consequently held in May 1992, wherein the Kurdistan Democratic Party secured 45.3% of the vote and a majority of seats.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The two parties agreed to form the first Kurdish cabinet led by PUK politician Fuad Masum as Prime Minister in July 1992 and the main focus of the new cabinet was to mitigate the effect of the American-led sanctions on Iraq and to prevent internal Kurdish skirmishes. Nonetheless, the cabinet broke down due to plagues of embattlement and technocracy which disenfranchised the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and a new more partisan cabinet was formed and led by PUK politician Kosrat Rasul Ali in April 1993. The KDP-PUK relations quickly deteriorated and the first clashes in the civil war took place in May 1994 when PUK captured the towns of Shaqlawa and Chamchamal from KDP, which in turn pushed PUK out of Salahaddin (near Erbil). In September 1998, the United States mediated a ceasefire and the two warring parties signed the Washington Agreement deal, where in it was stipulated that the two parties would agree on revenue-sharing, power-sharing and security arrangements.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The anarchy in Kurdistan during the war created an opportunity for the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which created bases in the northern mountainous areas of the Kurdistan Region, which still operates in the Region in the 2010s with frequent calls for withdrawal.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In advance of the Iraq war in 2003, the two parties united in the negotiations with the Arab opposition to Saddam Hussein and succeeded in harvesting political, economic, and security gains and the Arab opposition agreed to recognize Kurdish autonomy in the case that Saddam Hussein was removed from power. America and Kurdistan also jointly rooted out the Islamist Ansar al-Islam group in Halabja area as Kurdistan hosted thousands of soldiers. The Kurdish autonomy which had existed since 1992 was formally recognized by the new Iraqi government in 2005 in the new Iraqi constitution and the KDP- and PUK-administered areas reunified in 2006, making the Kurdistan Region into one single administration. This reunification prompted Kurdish leaders and the Kurdish President Masoud Barzani to focus on bringing the Kurdish areas outside of the Kurdistan Region into the region and building healthy institutions.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2009, Kurdistan saw the birth of a new major party, the Gorran Movement, which was founded because of tensions in PUK and would subsequently weaken the party profoundly. The second most important political PUK figure, Nawshirwan Mustafa, was the founder of Gorran, who took advantage of sentiments among many PUK politicians critical of the cooperation with the KDP. Gorran would subsequently win 25 seats (or 23.7% of the votes) in the 2009 parliamentary elections to the detriment of the Kurdistan List. In the aftermath of the elections, Gorran failed at its attempts to persuade the Kurdistan Islamic Group and Kurdistan Islamic Union to leave the Kurdistan List, provoking both KDP and PUK. Gorran also attempted to create goodwill with the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, which only aggravated the situation in Kurdistan, and the KDP and PUK chose to boycott Gorran from politics.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In the period leading up to the ISIL invasion of Iraq in June 2014, the Iraqi-Kurdish relations were in a decline that the war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) only worsened. When Iraqi forces withdrew from the Syrian-Iraqi border and away from the disputed areas, the Kurdistan Region consequently had a 1,000 km front with ISIL, which put the region into an economic stalemate. However, Kurdistan did not compromise on their stance regarding financial independence from Baghdad. Due to the Iraqi withdrawal, Kurdish Peshmerga took control of most disputed areas, including Kirkuk, Khanaqin, Jalawla, Bashiqa, Sinjar and Makhmur. The strategically important Mosul Dam was also captured by Kurdish forces. However, the control was only temporary as Iraqi forces retook control over most of the disputed areas in October 2017, after the 2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum. As of 2019, the Kurdistan Region and the Federal Government in Baghdad are negotiating joint control over the disputed areas as their relations have become more cordial in the aftermath of ISIL's defeat.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan region of Iraq is an autonomous region in northern Iraq. It borders Iran in the east, Turkey in the north, and Syria in the west. The region encompasses most of Iraqi Kurdistan, which is the southern part of the greater geographical region of Kurdistan. The region lies between latitudes 34° and 38°N, and longitudes 41° and 47°E.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Most of the northern and northeastern parts of the region are mountainous, especially those bordering Turkey and Iran. The region has several high mountains and mountain ranges. Other areas of the region are hills and plains, which make up the central and most southern parts of the region.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Most of the precipitation there falls as rain or snow between November and April, annual precipitation ranges from about 375 to 724 mm. From ancient times this has made cultivation of winter crops (and vegetables and fruit in the summer) and the raising of livestock possible.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Around 1,368,388 hectares (33%) of the land is rainfed arable agricultural land and 328,428 hectares (8%) is Irrigated arable agricultural land.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The climate of the Kurdistan Region is semi-arid continental; hot and dry in summer, and cold and wet in winter. The region is cooler compared to the central and southern parts of Iraq.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Summers are hot and dry, with high average temperatures ranging from 35 °C (95 °F) in the cooler northernmost areas to blistering 40 °C (104 °F) in the southwest, with lows around 21 °C (70 °F) to 24 °C (75 °F). Winter is dramatically cooler than the rest of Iraq, with highs averaging between 9 °C (48 °F) and 11 °C (52 °F) and with lows hovering around 3 °C (37 °F) in some areas and freezing in others, dipping to −2 °C (28 °F) and 0 °C (32 °F) on average.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Vegetation in the region includes "Abies cilicica", "Quercus calliprinos", "Quercus brantii", "Quercus infectoria", "Quercus ithaburensis", "Quercus macranthera", "Cupressus sempervirens", "Platanus orientalis", "Pinus brutia", "Juniperus foetidissima", "Juniperus excelsa", "Juniperus oxycedrus", "Salix alba", "Olea europaea", "Ficus carica", "Populus euphratica", "Populus nigra", "Crataegus monogyna", "Crataegus azarolus", cherry plum, rose hips, pistachio trees, pear and "Sorbus graeca". The desert in the south is mostly steppe and would feature xeric plants such as palm trees, tamarix, date palm, fraxinus, poa, white wormwood and chenopodiaceae.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Animals found in the region include the Syrian brown bear, wild boar, gray wolf, golden jackal, Indian crested porcupine, red fox, goitered gazelle, Eurasian otter, striped hyena, Persian fallow deer, onager, mangar and the Euphrates softshell turtle.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Bird species include, the see-see partridge, Menetries's warbler, western jackdaw, Red-billed chough, hooded crow, European nightjar, rufous-tailed scrub robin, masked shrike and the pale rockfinch.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan Region is a democratic parliamentary republic and has a presidential system wherein the President is elected by Parliament for a four-year term. In case of extensions of parliament's term, the president's term is also automatically extended. The current President is Nechirvan Barzani who assumed office on 1 June 2019. The Kurdistan Parliament has 111 seats and are held every fifth year.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Committee for implementing article 140 defines the disputed territories as those areas Arabised and whose border modified between 17 July 1968 and 9 April 2003. Those areas include parts of four governorates of pre-1968 borders.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Disputed internal Kurdish–Iraqi boundaries have been a core concern for Arabs and Kurds, especially since US invasion and political restructuring in 2003. Kurds gained territory to the south of Iraqi Kurdistan after the US-led invasion in 2003 to regain what land they considered historically theirs.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Despite being landlocked, the Kurdistan Region pursues a proactive foreign policy, which includes strengthening diplomatic relations with Iran, Russia, United States and Turkey. 29 countries have a diplomatic presence in the Kurdistan Region, while the Kurdistan Region has representative offices in 14 countries.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan Region is divided into four governorates (Parêzga): the governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, and Halabja. Each of these governorates is divided into districts, for a total of 26 districts. Each district is also divided into sub-districts. Each governorate has a capital city, while districts and sub-districts have 'district centers'.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan Region has the lowest poverty rates in Iraq and the stronger economy of the Kurdistan Region attracted around 20,000 workers from other parts of Iraq between 2003 and 2005. The number of millionaires in the city of Sulaymaniyah grew from 12 to 2,000 in 2003, reflecting the economic growth. According to some estimates, the debt of the Kurdish government reached $18 billion by January 2016.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The economy of Kurdistan is dominated by the oil industry. However, Kurdish officials have since the late 2010s attempted to diversify the economy to mitigate a new economic crisis like the one which hit the region during the fight against ISIL. Major oil export partners include Israel, Italy, France and Greece.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: KRG-controlled parts of Iraqi Kurdistan contain 4 billion barrels of proven oil reserves. However, the KRG has estimated that the region contains around of unproven oil resource. Extraction of these reserves began in 2007.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In November 2011, Exxon challenged the Iraqi central government's authority with the signing of oil and gas contracts for exploration rights to six parcels of land in Kurdistan, including one contract in the disputed territories, just east of the Kirkuk mega-field. This act caused Baghdad to threaten to revoke Exxon's contract in its southern fields, most notably the West-Qurna Phase 1 project. Exxon responded by announcing its intention to leave the West-Qurna project.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: As of July 2007, the Kurdish government solicited foreign companies to invest in 40 new oil sites, with the hope of increasing regional oil production over the following 5 years by a factor of five, to about . Notable companies active in Kurdistan include Exxon, TotalEnergies, Chevron, Talisman Energy, DNO, MOL Group, Genel Energy, Hunt Oil, Gulf Keystone Petroleum, and Marathon Oil.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Other mineral resources that exist in significant quantities in the region include coal, copper, gold, iron, limestone (which is used to produce cement), marble, and zinc. The world's largest deposit of rock sulfur is located just southwest of Erbil.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In July 2012, Turkey and the Kurdistan Regional Government signed an agreement by which Turkey will supply the KRG with refined petroleum products in exchange for crude oil. Crude deliveries are expected to occur on a regular basis.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Due to the lack of a proper census, the exact population and demographics of Kurdistan Region are unknown, but the government has started to publish more detailed figures. The population of the region is notoriously difficult to ascertain, as the Iraqi government has historically sought to minimize the importance of the Kurdish minority while Kurdish groups have had a tendency to exaggerate the numbers. Based on available data, Kurdistan has a young population with an estimated 36% of the population being under the age of 15.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Kurdistan has a religiously diverse population. The dominant religion is Islam, which is professed by the majority of Kurdistan Region's inhabitants. These include Kurds, Iraqi Turkmen, and Arabs, belonging mostly to the Shafi'i school of Sunni Islam. There is also a small number of Shia Feyli Kurds.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2015, the Kurdistan Regional Government enacted a law to formally protect religious minorities. Christianity is professed by Assyrians and Armenians.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Yazidis make up a significant minority, with some 650,000 in 2005, or 560,000 as of 2013, The Yarsan (Ahl-e Haqq or Kakai) religion numbers around 200,000 adherents respectively. In 2020, it was reported that 60 Zoroastrian families live in Iraqi Kurdistan. The first Zoroastrian temple was opened in the city of Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî) in September 2016.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: A tiny ethno-religious community of Mandaeans also exists within the semi-autonomous region. The National Association of Jews from Kurdistan in Israel stated there is a small number of expatriate Jews in the Kurdistan Region, but no Jews remaining from original Jewish communities.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Widespread economic activity between the Kurdistan Region and Turkey has given the opportunity for Kurds in Turkey to seek jobs in the Kurdistan Region. A Kurdish newspaper based in the Kurdish capital estimates that around 50,000 Kurds from Turkey are now living in the Kurdistan Region.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan Region is hosting 1.2 million displaced Iraqis who have been displaced by the ISIS war, as of early December 2017. There were about 335,000 in the area prior to 2014 with the rest arriving in 2014 as a result of unrest in Syria and attacks by the Islamic State.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Before the establishment of the Kurdistan Regional Government, primary and secondary education was almost entirely taught in Arabic. Higher education was always taught in Arabic. This however changed with the establishment of the Kurdistan Autonomous Region. The first international school, the International School of Choueifat opened its branch in the Kurdistan Region in 2006. Other international schools have opened and British International Schools in Kurdistan is the latest with a planned opening in Suleimaniah in September 2011.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdistan Region's official universities are listed below, followed by their English acronym (if commonly used), internet domain, establishment date and latest data about the number of students.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Iraqi Kurdistan has been investing in the growth of its human capital in general. Public sector employees are often enrolled in local training programmes or sent overseas to participate in training courses, technical classes, and professional development programmes. However, factors such as the lack of a practical and formal HRD framework specific to the KRG's public sector, the absence of evaluation process, inadequate civil service training institutions, and corruption have hampered effective and efficient professional development and training in the public sector. Therefore, an assessment of such programmes and their outcomes is needed to identify any misuse of public funds, as well as to assist in the reducing of administrative and political corruption and to make policy recommendations. The government's policies for the public sector have also had an impact on the private sector. However, the government has played a much smaller role in the private sector. In Iraqi Kurdistan, the Ministry of Planning has primarily concentrated on activating training in the public sector, with the goal of expanding opportunities and improving the efficiency of the training process. In the long run, this will have an effect on private sector training and growth.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2010 Human Rights Watch reported that journalists in the Kurdistan Region who criticize the regional government have faced substantial violence, threats, and lawsuits, and some have fled the country. Some journalists faced trial and threats of imprisonment for their reports about corruption in the region.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2009 Human Rights Watch found that some health providers in Iraqi Kurdistan had been involved in both performing and promoting misinformation about the practice of female genital mutilation. Girls and women receive conflicting and inaccurate messages from media campaigns and medical personnel on its consequences. The Kurdistan parliament in 2008 passed a draft law outlawing the practice, but the ministerial decree necessary to implement it, expected in February 2009, was cancelled. As reported to the Centre for Islamic Pluralism by the non-governmental organization, called as Stop FGM in Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, on 25 November, officially admitted the wide prevalence in the territory of female genital mutilation (FGM). Recognition by the KRG of the frequency of this custom among Kurds came during a conference program commemorating the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. On 27 November 2010, the Kurdish government officially admitted to violence against women in Kurdistan and began taking serious measures. 21 June 2011 The Family Violence Bill was approved by the Kurdistan Parliament, it includes several provisions criminalizing the practice. A 2011 Kurdish law criminalized FGM practice in Iraqi Kurdistan and law was accepted four years later. The studies have shown that there is a trend of general decline of FGM.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: British lawmaker Robert Halfon sees the Kurdistan Region as a more progressive Muslim region than the other Muslim countries in the Middle East.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Although the Kurdish regional parliament has officially recognized ethnic minorities such as Assyrians, Turkmen, Arabs, Armenians, Mandaeans, Shabaks and Yazidis, there have been accusations of Kurdish discrimination against those groups. The Assyrians have reported Kurdish officials' reluctance in rebuilding Assyrian villages in their region while constructing more settlements for the Kurds affected during the Anfal campaign. After his visit to the region, Dutch politician Joël Voordewind noted that the positions reserved for minorities in the Kurdish parliament were appointed by Kurds as the Assyrians for example had no possibility to nominate their own candidates.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: The Kurdish regional government has also been accused of trying to Kurdify other regions such as the Nineveh Plains and Kirkuk by providing financial support for Kurds who want to settle in those areas.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: While Kurdish forces held the city of Kirkuk, Kurdish authorities attempted to Kurdify the city. Turkmen and Arab residents in Kirkuk experienced intimidation, harassment and were forced to leave their homes, in order to increase the Kurdish demographic in Kirkuk and bolster their claims to the city. Multiple Human Rights Watch reports detail the confiscation of Turkmen and Arab families' documents, preventing them from voting, buying property and travelling. Turkmen residents of Kirkuk were detained by Kurdish forces and compelled to leave the city. Kurdish authorities expelled hundreds of Arab families from the city, demolishing their homes in the process.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: United Nations reports since 2006 have documented that Kurdish authorities and Peshmerga militia forces were illegally policing Kirkuk and other disputed areas, and that these militia have abducted Turkmen and Arabs, subjecting them to torture.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In April 2016, Human Rights Watch wrote that the Kurdish security force of KRG, the Asayish, blocked the roads to Erbil to prevent Assyrians from holding a protest. According to demonstrators, the reason for the blocked protest was that Kurds in the Nahla Valley, mainly populated by Assyrians, encroached on land owned by Assyrians, without any action by courts or officials to remove the structures the Kurds built there.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In February 2017, Human Rights Watch said Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) forces are detaining men and boys who have fled the fighting in Mosul even after they have passed security checks. Detainees were held for up to four months without any communication with their families. Relatives of these men and boys said that KRG and Iraqi forces didn't inform them of the places of their detained relatives and didn't facilitate any contact with them.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: Human Rights Watch reported that Kurdistan Regional Government security forces and local police detained 32 unarmed protesters in Erbil on March 4, 2017, at a peaceful demonstration against recent clashes in Sinjar. 23 of them were released at the same day and 3 more within four days, but 6, all foreign nationals, are still being held. A police chief ordered one protester who was released to permanently leave Erbil, where he was living. While in detention, protesters were not allowed to contact with anyone or have access to a lawyer.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2017, Assyrian activists Juliana Taimoorazy and Matthew Joseph accused the Kurdistan Regional Government of issuing threats of violence against Assyrians living in the area who protested its independence referendum. These accusations were later confirmed when the KDP-controlled provincial council of Alqosh issued a statement warning residents that they would face consequences for protesting the referendum.


title: Kurdistan Region

text: In 2010, it was reported that passing of a new law in Iraqi Kurdistan, guaranteeing “gender equality”, has deeply outraged some local religious community, including the minister of endowments and religious affairs and prominent imams, who interpreted the phrase as "legitimizing homosexuality in Kurdistan". Kamil Haji Ali, the minister of endowments and religious affairs, said in this regard that the new law would “spread immorality” and “distort” Kurdish society. Following an outrage of religious movements, the KRG held a press conference, where the public were ensured that gender equality did not include giving marriage rights to homosexuals, whose existence is effectively invisible in Iraq due to restrictive traditional rules.