Regional Structure of the Zagros Fold-Thrust Belt in Kurdistan, Northern Iraq

This study examines the regional structure of the Zagros fold-thrust belt in Kurdistan, northern Iraq, utilizing field studies, remote sensing-GIS analyses, and cross-section restorations. The study area lies in the frontal zone of the north-western part of the Zagros fold and thrust belt in Kurdistan, near the north-eastern margin of the Arabian Plate. It is characterized by WNW-ESE striking, doubly-plunging, upright symmetric to asymmetric detachment folds that encompass 8.2–10.9 km of Paleozoic to Quaternary layers. Several regional structural sections were created, with a deep basal detachment identified at the base of the Paleozoic sequences. The area has experienced thin-skinned detachment folding along with thick-skinned thrusting from the Mid Miocene to the present. Detachment folding caused a maximum NNE-SSW-directed shortening of about 18.62 km (19.71%) over a section length of 94.45 km, while thrust faults resulted in a maximum shortening of around 1.98 km (1.95%) over a section length of 101.55 km.