Kurdish Dissident Groups Say They Are Preparing To Join The Fight Against Iran With U.S. Support

IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in northern Iraq are preparing for a potential war cross border military operation in IranSpeaking to the Associated Press, Kurdish officials said that the United States asked Iraqi Kurds to support them.

Kurdish groups are widely seen as the best-organized faction of the fragmented Iranian opposition and are believed to have thousands of trained fighters. their entrances war It could pose a significant challenge to embattled authorities in Tehran and also risk drawing Iraq further into the conflict.

Khalil Nadiri, an official of the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, said on Wednesday that some of his forces had moved to areas near the Iranian border in Sulaymaniyah province and were on standby.

U.S. officials have contacted leaders of Kurdish opposition groups about a potential operation, he said, without giving further details.

Asked about reports that the Trump administration is considering arming Kurdish groups in Iran, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters Wednesday: “None of our objectives are based on supporting or arming any particular force. So we’re aware of what other entities might be doing, but our objectives are not focused on that.”

Before the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday, triggering a new war in the Middle East, the PAK had claimed responsibility for attacks on the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in retaliation for violent attacks by Tehran. crackdown on protests. However an official The group said it was not sending forces from Iraq to Iran.

If Iranian and Iraqi Kurdish groups join the war, it will be the first entry of a significant ground force into the war. Kurdish groups have combat experience in the fight against the Islamic State group.

An official from Komala, one of the Iranian Kurdish groups, said on Wednesday that its forces were ready to cross the border within a week to 10 days and “waiting for the reasons to be suitable.” He spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns.

Kurds in Iran have a long history of grievances and rebellions against both the current Islamic Republic and the monarchy that preceded it. During his administration Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Kurds were marginalized, suppressed and sometimes rebelled.

After Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, the new theocracy also fought Kurdish rebels. Over several months, Iranian forces destroyed Kurdish towns and villages in clashes that left thousands dead.

While sharing the desire to overthrow the current authorities, Kurdish groups have also clashed with other groups. opposition groups – particularly the group led by the former Shah’s son, Reza Pahlavi, who accuses the Kurds of being separatists aiming to divide Iran.

The potential operation puts the leaders of Iraq’s Kurdish region in a delicate situation.

Three Iraqi Kurdish officials told the AP that a meeting was held Sunday night between US President Donald Trump and the heads of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), Massoud Barzani and Bafel Talabani, to discuss the situation in Iran.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

Trump asked Iraqi Kurds to militarily support Iranian Kurdish groups in operations in Iran and to open the border to allow Iranian Kurdish groups to move back and forth freely, one of the officials said.

Asked about the call and reports that Trump was seeking military support for Iranian Kurdish groups, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “He spoke with Kurdish leaders regarding our base in northern Iraq,” but denied that Trump had agreed to a specific plan.

The Iraqi Kurdish official said Iraqi Kurds are concerned that direct involvement in the conflict would lead to a harsh reaction from Iran. Already, the Kurdish region has witnessed a series of drone and missile attacks by Iran and its allied Iraqi militias in recent days, targeting US military bases, the US Consulate in Erbil and the bases of Kurdish groups.

Most attacks were halted, civilians’ homes were damaged and there were power outages in the region after a major gas field ceased operations due to security concerns.

In its statement, PUK confirmed that Talabani spoke with Trump on the phone and that Trump “provided a statement and vision regarding US goals in the war.” In the statement, it was stated that PUK “believes that the best solution is to return to the negotiation table.”

Spokespeople for the regional Kurdish administration in Iraq and Barzani declined to comment.

While Axios news site first reported the meeting between Trump and Kurdish leaders, CNN reported that the Trump administration was in talks with Kurdish groups regarding military support.

The presence of armed Iranian Kurdish groups in northern Iraq creates a point of friction between the central Iraqi government in Baghdad and Tehran.

Reached Iraq in 2023 Agreement reached with Iran on disarmament of groups and move them from their bases near the Iranian border areas, where they pose the potential for an armed challenge to Tehran, to camps designated by Baghdad.

Their military bases were closed and their movements in Iraq were restricted, but the groups did not give up their weapons.

Iraqi National Security Advisor Qassim al-Araji said in a post published on

Al-Araji said Iraq was determined to “prevent any group from infiltrating or crossing the Iranian border or carrying out terrorist acts from Iraqi territory” and noted that security reinforcements had been sent to the border.

In addition to retaliation by Iran, any move by Iraqi Kurds to join a cross-border attack would likely inflame tensions with Iran-backed Iraqi militias that have launched missile and drone attacks on Erbil in recent days.

Abdul-Zahra reported from Baghdad. Abby Sewell in Beirut and Konstantin Toropin and Michelle Price in Washington contributed.