Iraqi deserters mean a lot to the Kurds, who have been manning these lines since they broke with Baghdad after the end of the 1991 Gulf War. Those 12 years of autonomy for the Kurds, who have spent centuries fighting for an independent homeland, have depended heavily on the no-fly zone established by the United States and Britain. Now, with the war underway against Saddam Hussein, the Kurds seem to hope that the defeat of their longtime enemy is at hand and that soon they will no longer have to fight.

Each deserter from the lines across the no-man's-land strip brings that hope closer to reality.

But not this time. The three ''deserters'' walked up to the base, grinning sheepishly. They were fighters of the Kurdish ''pesh merga'' - ''they who face death.'' They had wandered off to forage for herbs in the lush spring growth of the no-man's-land.

''These plants are especially good for kidney ailments,'' Qadir Ali, one of the fighters, said as he clutched a clump of greenery.

Harki, the commander, said he had collected two Iraqi deserters on Friday, whom he had passed on to Kurdish security forces. ''They are demoralized,'' he said of his foes. ''They have no shoes. They do not want to fight.''

One of his men, manning a 30mm machine gun, saw more figures running out in the valley. This time, Harki sent a car. A few minutes later, these ''deserters'' drove up. It was a family of Kurdish farmers, who had seen the Kurdish base and had fled, thinking they were Iraqi troops.

Just then, the Iraqi side let loose with a few rounds of mortar. They did not look as though they were ready to surrender just yet. Harki's men saw two more figures out in the valley. Once again, he sent out his men. This time, the two men were Iraqi soldiers. But they were not deserters, either.

''They were scouting our positions,'' Harki said, looking slightly disappointed. ''They were not interested in surrendering.''

This story ran on page A29 of the Boston Globe on 3/23/2003.
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