Zakho is a Kurdish town in northern Iraq, situated about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the Turkish border and 20 kilometers (12½ miles) from the Syrian. Its name probably derives from Beth-Zakhu(house of victory) mentioned in a Syriac manuscript from the eleventh century, but Kurds and Jews have different etymologies (see below).

In addition to the largely Kurdish Muslim population, Zakho also had a Christian community (Assyrians [Nestorians], Chaldean Catholics, Armenians) and a Jewish community. Each community lived in a separate quarter close to…