1st World Conclave on Kurds Opens in Paris

PARIS — The first international conference on Kurds opened Saturday in Paris, bringing together about 200 delegates to focus attention on the problems of a minority spread over five countries.

Nearly 30 million Kurds live in Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Syria and the Soviet Union.

Kurds in Iraq, Iran and Turkey, which have the biggest populations, have their own independence movements, all fighting for a united Kurdish homeland.