The Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) is an organization operating in northern Iraq.  Founded by Mustafa Barzani in 1946, the KDP constitutes Iraq's largest Kurdish advocacy group. The group seeks greater autonomy for Kurds within Iraq and the eventual creation of Kurdistan as an independent nation-state. As a people,  Kurds are indigenous to a geo-cultural region commonly referred to as Kurdistan that is composed of territory from Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. Estimated at about 30 million people, the Kurds comprise one of the largest stateless ethnic groups in the world. Currently within Iraq, Kurds have established a de facto autonomous region, complete with an elected parliament, police force, schools, tax collectors, and an army. <p><br />Throughout its history, the KDP has targeted many organizations. Its main targets have been the Iraqi government under Saddam Hussein and Kurdish political rivals, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).  KDP rebels conducted full-scale armed attacks and helped to incite rebellions against Hussein's regime, most notably during the Iran-Iraq War, Operation Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. In order to assist in toppling Saddam Hussein, Iran provided quite a substantial portion of the KDP's funding. After Hussein's defeat in 1991, Iraqi Kurds and the KDP established a semi-autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq under the protection of Operation Provide Comfort's northern no-fly zone.  <p><br />The KDP's rivalry with the PUK has been attributed to disputed sovereignty over some territories in northern Iraq and the deflection of Jalal Talabani to form the PUK in 1974. Both groups conducted frequent armed attacks against each others' forces, attempting to gain strategic territory. However, in 1998, the two groups signed a peace agreement and now share control of the Kurdistan Regional Government. After accusing the PKK of provoking Turkish air strikes, attacking food supply trucks, and preventing Iraqi Kurdish refugees from returning, the KDP (allegedly funded by Turkey) conducted attacks against the PKK. By expelling the PKK from Iraqi territory, the KDP ensured the PKK would not be able to launch attacks against Turkey from Iraqi territory, a major concern of Turkey's.<br />