Kurds start ground offensive against Iran
By: By AMICHAI STEIN, IDAN KWELLER - The Jerusalem Post
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Kurds start ground offensive against Iran
Hundreds of Kurdish fighters have begun ground activity inside Iran from areas near the Iraqi border, Israeli and American officials confirmed to The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday, in a development that could open an additional front against Tehran as regional tensions continue to escalate.
The Kurdish forces operating along the Iran-Iraq border are considered one of the most prominent armed opposition groups confronting the regime in Tehran. The organizations involved are Iranian Kurdish groups that maintain thousands of fighters, most of whom operate from territory in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq along the frontier with Iran.
According to Kurdish sources, these forces have been preparing in recent days to participate in ground operations in western Iran with the aim of pressuring Iranian security forces and dispersing them across multiple arenas.
The strategic concept behind the activity, the sources said, is that fighting along the border areas would force the Iranian regime to divert military and security resources there, potentially easing pressure on protesters and opposition elements in major cities inside Iran.
A senior Kurdish source said on Tuesday evening that in their assessment "there is a major opportunity now," citing the heavy military pressure currently being placed on Iran and the strikes targeting regime infrastructure.
MEMBERS OF the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attend an exercise in southern Iran, in this handout image obtained on February 16, 2026. (credit: IRGC/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS)
In recent days, contacts and discussions reportedly took place between the Trump administration and Kurdish figures, including a conversation between President Donald Trump and Kurdish leaders in Iraq, as well as leaders of Iranian Kurdish opposition groups.
The discussions focused on the possibility of operational cooperation. Under such a scenario, Kurdish forces could serve as a ground element that destabilizes the Iranian regime in certain regions.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Kurdish forces expect potential American and Israeli support for such activity.
Such support could take several forms, primarily intelligence sharing, military assistance, and the creation of operational conditions that would enable Kurdish fighters to operate inside Iranian territory.
However, according to the assessments cited by the sources, the Kurdish forces alone do not possess the military capability required to overthrow the Iranian regime.
In addition, divisions exist among the various Kurdish organizations, which differ in ideology and strategic interests.
Any broader operation would also depend on cooperation from the leadership of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, particularly regarding the use of territory and the movement of weapons across the border.
The ground action began as Israel's small cabinet held a security assessment.
White House discussed arming Kurdish militias, denies action was taken
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed reports during a briefing with journalists claiming that the Trump administration was considering arming Kurdish forces in order to spark an uprising inside Iran, stating that the reports were false.
Leavitt confirmed that Trump had held conversations with Kurdish leaders as part of his ongoing discussions with partners and allies in the Middle East, particularly regarding the US military base in northern Iraq.
However, she stressed that any claim suggesting the president had approved a plan to arm Kurdish forces against Iran was incorrect and had "no factual basis," according to the briefing.
Officials deny claims, say no Kurds crossed border
Aziz Ahmad, Deputy Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister of Kurdistan, called the claims "patently false" in a post to X/Twitter later on Wednesday, claiming that not a single Iraqi has crossed the border.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) also denied the reports, stating that these reports are "aimed at undermining security and stability in Iran," according to a report from Ynet.
The IRGC threatened that "Any attempted infiltration will be met with a harsh response."
According to Iranian news agency Tasnim , an Iranian security source also refuted the claims, stating that "After the US and Israel failed to achieve their goals on the ground, they are now trying to undermine the spirit of resistance of our people through psychological warfare."
"We assure the citizens of Ilam province that security prevails along the border with Iraq that the military and security forces are fully protecting," he said.
According to Rudaw , an official from the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) also dismissed the reports.
The administrator of this group reserves the right, along with the site moderators, to moderate all and any postings to this group, including the right to enforce the ToS, the CoC, and also including anything that the administrator deems within his sole discretion to be offensive, including and not limited to off topic or 'no value' comments, with the power to delete in exercising those rights.
It would be best, therefore, to be civil in posting on this group.
By now it should be well known that I am unable to open certain sources, videos and pictures. If I cannot, I will ask that they be described and explained. If the poster refuses to comply, their comment will be deleted. Instagrams are banned.
Tags
Who is online
77 visitors
So many lies are being told by so many sources it's impossible to know what's happening and what isn't. But it is logical that the Kurds and the ME nations that are being attacked by Iran would get involved in defeating the Iranian regime. My opinion is that Trump missed the boat, and it was the earlier uprising by the Iranian freedom protesters the time to make the hit, before the protesters were decimated by Iranian governent forces.
Of particular interest to me was this quote from the article:
Iran is fully aware of how effective "psychological warfare" is, having trained Hamas to excell in using it, as proven by Hamas' success in turning most of the world against Israel in the Gaza conflict. SO MANY have fallen victim to that ruse, including many on this NT site.
The problem was that the protestors had no weapons and the Security Forces did.
I see this as a very positive development. Those Security Forces need to be taken out by boots on the ground, and I think we just got them. We haven't been good to our Kurdish allies in the past, but in this case the Kurds have personal reasons to go after the Iranian regime.
No, we haven't and that has been to our great discredit.
When those people were attacked by Saddam we should have supported them.
Maybe trmp will think about setting up a regime governed by the Kurds.....doubtful
trump abandoned and fucked over the kurds in his last term ...
so did GWB
I didn't realize before your comment that GWB meant George W Bush. I was ticketed on another article because I made a comment asking what it meant.
Well, now you know. I can't believe you got a ticket for asking a perfectly legitimate questin
believe it ...
I absolutely agree on that.
I supect that this is very limited. But the Kurds are putting themselves in the conversation.
Yes, they could be saving a world which they are outside of.
More info HERE on this indicating now thousands of Kurd fighters moving in, not just hundreds.
Perhaps this development will make unnecessary any American boots on the ground. Let's hope so!
Kurds are 10-15% of Iran's population. They are religiously diverse. They can contribute to the ayatollahs' problems, but probably not "win". Like I said, they're positionning themselves.
Actually they are only 10% of the population in Iran at present, but unofficial estimates from before the Ayatollah seized power in 1979 range from 15-20%. Many were pushed out, and it stands to reason that many will come back mostly from the Kurdistan region of Iraq when this is over.
Predominantly Sunni.
Indeed.
Morning free...and the Kurds need to be careful what they do fighting with Iran..
Their old foe Turkiye is sitting in the background and I am sure they would be more than happy to take advantage of the situation with the Kurds off fighting..if the Kurds are thinking this is going to score brownie points with Israel and the US I think they will be sorely mistaken...
If anything I find it rather interesting and odd that the countries Iran has hit so far do not appear to have retaliated and sitting back and let others do the work for them..
Nothing in our news reports to say Qatar, Sauda Arabia, Kuwait the UAE etc have sent missiles back into Iran after being hit..their silence is somewhat deafening especially from the Brits after hitting their airbase in Cyprus...
Maybe they're scared. Makes me think back to when I was a kid. "Who's afraid of the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf...."
It's Virginia you should be afraid of.
“Honey: Leave me alone…I’m going…to…be…sick."
???
I suspect he means the CIA, headquartered in Langley Virginia. There have been times in our past where perhaps that statement might have been true. Not sure about this situation though. The Iranian regime was likely more frightening in terms of being a threat to their neighbors and the world. Hamas is evidence of that.
Thanks, Freewill. Now I get it.
This just in:
"Iran's military has said it has targeted the headquarters of Kurdish forces in northern Iraq, stepping up strikes on Kurdish regions in both Iran and Iraq.
In a statement quoted by Iran's state media, the military said it attacked "Kurdish groups opposed to the revolution in Iraqi Kurdistan with three missiles".
Iran targets headquarters of Iranian Kurdish forces in Iraq
This quickly turned into an international movement against Iran.
By "This" do you mean Iran's attack on the Kurds, or the kind of problem it causes me?
Iran has been attacking the Kurds (and much of the western world) for decades. They saw an opportunity and took it. I don't know what kind of problem it causes you.
It doesn't cause me personally any problem at all. It's just that there will never be peace in the Middle East, and therefore never be a peaceful world, until their ultra-religious regime is changed from what it is.
Does it not concern you to be living in what that regime calls The Big Saten and the target of its chanting "Death to America" - a regime that uses proxies to threaten and attack others, and has lied consistnently about its actual intentions to develop nuclear weapons and develop intercontinental missiles?
That's the ideology of the region. It's going to take a long time to rid the world of it.
I've fought it first hand during my deployments. Although the younger generations don't know it, we've all experienced the terrorism pushed by that region for almost 50 years now. It's long overdue that something be done about it instead of just talk.
@ Vic
For some weird reason your link turns NT into a Chinese web site so I have to start NT again.
I must have a few fans over there.
The Kurds are brave-- and very smart fighters. But they are extremely outgunned and out numbered. At this point all that their involvement would do is result in the massacre of many Kurds . . .
We've supported them in the past. And then suddenly, without warning, we withdrew and totally abandoned them!
And guess who ordered our sudden betrayal of the Kurds?
The Kurds are not stupid. And they remember who suddenly withdrew our support of them . . .
Yep-- the very same guy who now wants them join the fight vs. Iran.
Israel supported them. Erdogan wants to wipe them off the face of the Earth.
"Damn it Lucy! Not again!"
Agreed.
But they are extremely outgunned and out numbered. At this point all that their involvement would do is result in the massacre of many Kurds . . .
When it was first mentioned I liked the idea, but after hearing from the leader of the Iraqi Kurds (who have a bit of autonomy in northern Iraq) I have changed my mind. In an interview with Bret Baier the other night he said it would be a mistake to have a foreign faction go in to take out the Iranian regime. It might actually turn the Iranian people back towards supporting the regime.
Erdogan is an Islamic extremist. Because of his persecution of the Kurds many people assume that the Kurds are not Muslim.
But most Kurds are Muslims-- its just that Kurds tend not to be religious extremists.
I think he's right.
And in any event there aren't that many Kurds in that area (compared to the much larger number of various types of Persians.
And most Iranians love their country-- its just the horrible current regime they don't like. However this war turns out, I'm afraid the current Iranian regime will remain in power.
I'm wondering what the goal of this recent war is. Recently we attacked Iran, supposedly to destroy their nuclear program. Our government declared their nuclear program was "obliterated".
So now we attacked Iran again. Does that that their nuclear sites must be "obliterated" again? That we must "re-obliterate" those sites every few months?
And how many more American soldiers must die as the obliterations continue?
On the TV news this morning I saw the huge major square in Tehran absolutely FILLED with must have been a million citizens waving flags and images of their new leader celebraing his appointment. I'm not so sure now that there is going to be a regime change.
I would assume the goal is regime change, but IMO Trump blew it. The Iranians were ready for it and protesting in January, maybe taking Trump's word that he would help them achieve their goal, but he didn't help them, and thousands of them were killed and more arrested. He let them down so they don't trust him. Can ANYONE trust that XXXX?
The problem is that the fanatics ruling Iran are determined to have nuclear weapons. We would be insane to allow it.
Therefore, they must be wiped out.
He couldn't help in January. He needed the military assets to be in place.
When they arrived, he acted.
There are two problems, the one you outlined above and the insane wannabe dictator that attacked them unprovicated, also with nuclear weapons. Peace President my ass. He's no better that his butt buddy Putin. Remember you're hero is the one that took inspectors away from Iranian nuclear sites in the first place....
Yeah... in the history of that region it's never worked out well for western civilizations attempting nation building. All it ever seems to accomplish is making new generations of terrorists. You can bet ISPK is already maneuvering to take over any vacuums in leadership.
Fucking stupid and irresponsible.