Amid conflicting media reports, Iran's Kurds are in the spotlight. What they do next – as allies, bystanders, or proxies – could be key to the war's next phase
Analysis
Winthrop Rodgers
05 March, 2026
THE NEW ARAB
Weeks after suffering a major setback in Syria, the Kurds are again at the centre of another major crisis in the Middle East.
Just days after the Trump administration began its war on Iran, reports emerged that Washington was planning to support ground operations by Iranian Kurdish groups as a way to destabilise Iranian security forces.
This could present a major opportunity to increase Kurdish political influence, but it comes with major risks as well, with the consequences potentially rippling out across the region.
The role of Iranian Kurds
In the days after Israel and the US began their bombing campaign in Iran on 28 February, it became apparent that the Kurdish provinces in western Iran were experiencing a notably high volume of attacks against security forces' infrastructure.
The bombing campaign has extensively targeted facilities belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Basij volunteer militia, the intelligence ministry, the police, and border guards.
According to one analysis, more than 125 locations have been hit so far, including major population centres like Sanandaj, Kermanshah, Baneh, and Marivan. It was unclear how many members of the security forces had been killed in the airstrikes or how many civilians had been harmed.
According to an unnamed official who spoke with CNN, the airstrikes would create space for “Kurdish armed forces to take on the Iranian security forces and pin them down to make it easier for unarmed Iranians in the major cities to turn out without getting massacred”. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) would provide arms for that purpose.
On the night of 4 March, Western and Israeli outlets reported that ground operations by the Iranian Kurds were underway, which was quickly and categorically denied by multiple political parties and Iraqi Kurds.
“There’s a lot of fake news. The Iranian regime has used this. The Iranian opposition has used this, saying Iran's territorial integrity is in danger. It's used a lot against Kurds,” Dr Allan Hassaniyan, a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter, told The New Arab.
Politically, Iranian Kurds are spread across a wide range of armed parties. They include the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI), Kolama, the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), and the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), along with several other smaller factions.
While all have fought Tehran at one time or another, they have largely avoided active conflict with the Iranian state in recent times.
Historically, they were unable to work together because of their different histories, ideologies, popular bases, and organisational structures, but have recently begun to cooperate more closely.
05 March, 2026
THE NEW ARAB
Weeks after suffering a major setback in Syria, the Kurds are again at the centre of another major crisis in the Middle East.
Just days after the Trump administration began its war on Iran, reports emerged that Washington was planning to support ground operations by Iranian Kurdish groups as a way to destabilise Iranian security forces.
This could present a major opportunity to increase Kurdish political influence, but it comes with major risks as well, with the consequences potentially rippling out across the region.
The role of Iranian Kurds
In the days after Israel and the US began their bombing campaign in Iran on 28 February, it became apparent that the Kurdish provinces in western Iran were experiencing a notably high volume of attacks against security forces' infrastructure.
The bombing campaign has extensively targeted facilities belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Basij volunteer militia, the intelligence ministry, the police, and border guards.
According to one analysis, more than 125 locations have been hit so far, including major population centres like Sanandaj, Kermanshah, Baneh, and Marivan. It was unclear how many members of the security forces had been killed in the airstrikes or how many civilians had been harmed.
According to an unnamed official who spoke with CNN, the airstrikes would create space for “Kurdish armed forces to take on the Iranian security forces and pin them down to make it easier for unarmed Iranians in the major cities to turn out without getting massacred”. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) would provide arms for that purpose.
On the night of 4 March, Western and Israeli outlets reported that ground operations by the Iranian Kurds were underway, which was quickly and categorically denied by multiple political parties and Iraqi Kurds.
“There’s a lot of fake news. The Iranian regime has used this. The Iranian opposition has used this, saying Iran's territorial integrity is in danger. It's used a lot against Kurds,” Dr Allan Hassaniyan, a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter, told The New Arab.
Politically, Iranian Kurds are spread across a wide range of armed parties. They include the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI), Kolama, the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), and the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), along with several other smaller factions.
While all have fought Tehran at one time or another, they have largely avoided active conflict with the Iranian state in recent times.
Historically, they were unable to work together because of their different histories, ideologies, popular bases, and organisational structures, but have recently begun to cooperate more closely.
Politically, Iranian Kurds are spread across a wide range of armed parties. While all have fought Tehran at one time or another, they have largely avoided active conflict with the state. [Getty]
Amid the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ (Jin, Jiyan, Azadi) protests in 2023, the parties formed a grouping known as The Dialogue Centre in order to release joint statements and discuss pressing issues.
On 22 February, they took a further step towards unity by announcing the Coalition of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan. Initially a five-member group, a holdout Komala faction joined on 4 March. It now represents the broadest range of organised Kurdish parties assembled in recent memory.
“The initiative by itself is really important. It's quite promising for any future development in Rojhelat,” Hassaniyan said, using the Kurdish term for Iranian Kurdistan. However, the new alliance is “very untested”, he warned.
“How it will ultimately work is too early to know. But it should be judged by the fact that it brought so many political parties with different ambitions together,” he added.
Age-old fears of abandonment
Despite the new support from the US and better internal unity, the Kurds’ age-old fear that foreign forces will abandon them remains an important factor. While there are many recent examples, including in January when the US refused to intervene to protect the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from Damascus, the Iranian Kurds have a local example on which to draw.
During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied part of northwest Iran and kept troops there for a period after the war. This protection allowed for the establishment of the independent Kurdish Republic of Mahabad in 1946.
However, it collapsed in the months after the Soviets withdrew and the Shah moved to reassert central authority over the area. Fears about overreliance on outside powers and an understanding of their history will help to guide the parties’ decision-making moving forward.
“The Kurds have their own objectives, which the world doesn't understand. Kurds are not a proxy,” Hassaniyan said.
“We deal with great powers, but the Kurdish movement is not a product of a few days, just because the American and Israelis began to bomb Iran. It is older than the American engagement in the region. It is older than the state of Israel itself,” he added.
Developments in Iranian Kurdistan are having an effect next door in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region as well. The capital of Erbil has been hit by more than 100 rockets and drones fired by Iran and Iraqi militias, mostly aimed at the air base on the north side of the city, which hosts US troops.
Amid the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ (Jin, Jiyan, Azadi) protests in 2023, the parties formed a grouping known as The Dialogue Centre in order to release joint statements and discuss pressing issues.
On 22 February, they took a further step towards unity by announcing the Coalition of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan. Initially a five-member group, a holdout Komala faction joined on 4 March. It now represents the broadest range of organised Kurdish parties assembled in recent memory.
“The initiative by itself is really important. It's quite promising for any future development in Rojhelat,” Hassaniyan said, using the Kurdish term for Iranian Kurdistan. However, the new alliance is “very untested”, he warned.
“How it will ultimately work is too early to know. But it should be judged by the fact that it brought so many political parties with different ambitions together,” he added.
Age-old fears of abandonment
Despite the new support from the US and better internal unity, the Kurds’ age-old fear that foreign forces will abandon them remains an important factor. While there are many recent examples, including in January when the US refused to intervene to protect the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from Damascus, the Iranian Kurds have a local example on which to draw.
During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied part of northwest Iran and kept troops there for a period after the war. This protection allowed for the establishment of the independent Kurdish Republic of Mahabad in 1946.
However, it collapsed in the months after the Soviets withdrew and the Shah moved to reassert central authority over the area. Fears about overreliance on outside powers and an understanding of their history will help to guide the parties’ decision-making moving forward.
“The Kurds have their own objectives, which the world doesn't understand. Kurds are not a proxy,” Hassaniyan said.
“We deal with great powers, but the Kurdish movement is not a product of a few days, just because the American and Israelis began to bomb Iran. It is older than the American engagement in the region. It is older than the state of Israel itself,” he added.
Developments in Iranian Kurdistan are having an effect next door in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region as well. The capital of Erbil has been hit by more than 100 rockets and drones fired by Iran and Iraqi militias, mostly aimed at the air base on the north side of the city, which hosts US troops.
As the US-Israeli war on Iran expands, Kurds are facing pressure from all sides. [Getty]
So far, there have only been a few injuries, but debris falling from intercepted munitions is causing damage to civilian homes. On the night of 4 March, the Pope Francis Residential Complex in a Christian part of the city was damaged in an attack. On the same night, a delivery driver was wounded by falling debris.
Iran has also attacked bases inside the Kurdistan Region belonging to PDKI, Komala, and PAK on several occasions since the war started.
Politically, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) must walk a fine line to avoid antagonising any one side.
“The Kurdistan Region is not a part of this war, and it will not be a part of it in the future,” said KRG Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani on 4 March. This was echoed by KRG spokesperson Peshawa Hawramani the following day.
“The Kurdistan Regional Government and the political parties within it are not part of any campaign to expand the war and tensions in the region,” he said.
Nevertheless, the KRG is under tremendous pressure from Washington, Tehran, and other regional governments.
Under pressure from all sides
The apparent plan to back the Iranian Kurdish parties came to light after Axios reported that US President Donald Trump had spoken with Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani.
During those calls, Trump told them that they “must choose a side in this battle - either with America and Israel or with Iran,” according to a PUK official, who spoke with the Washington Post.
This prompted a flurry of calls with Iraqi Kurdish officials from the Iranian and Turkish foreign ministers, who likely pressured the KDP and PUK to prevent the Iranian Kurds from using the Kurdistan Region to launch attacks.
“The KRG will massively pay” for any US operation using the Kurdistan Region, Hassaniyan said. “I feel really sorry for them to be under pressure from all sides.”
At this point, the situation is extremely chaotic, with the US and Israel continuing to pound targets in Iranian Kurdistan, the parties reportedly ready to begin attacks on the ground, and government officials around the world on edge.
Winthrop Rodgers is a journalist and analyst based in Sulaymaniyah in Iraq's Kurdistan Region. He focuses on politics, human rights, and political economy.
Follow him on Twitter and Instagram: @wrodgers2
Edited by Charlie Hoyle
So far, there have only been a few injuries, but debris falling from intercepted munitions is causing damage to civilian homes. On the night of 4 March, the Pope Francis Residential Complex in a Christian part of the city was damaged in an attack. On the same night, a delivery driver was wounded by falling debris.
Iran has also attacked bases inside the Kurdistan Region belonging to PDKI, Komala, and PAK on several occasions since the war started.
Politically, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) must walk a fine line to avoid antagonising any one side.
“The Kurdistan Region is not a part of this war, and it will not be a part of it in the future,” said KRG Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani on 4 March. This was echoed by KRG spokesperson Peshawa Hawramani the following day.
“The Kurdistan Regional Government and the political parties within it are not part of any campaign to expand the war and tensions in the region,” he said.
Nevertheless, the KRG is under tremendous pressure from Washington, Tehran, and other regional governments.
Under pressure from all sides
The apparent plan to back the Iranian Kurdish parties came to light after Axios reported that US President Donald Trump had spoken with Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani.
During those calls, Trump told them that they “must choose a side in this battle - either with America and Israel or with Iran,” according to a PUK official, who spoke with the Washington Post.
This prompted a flurry of calls with Iraqi Kurdish officials from the Iranian and Turkish foreign ministers, who likely pressured the KDP and PUK to prevent the Iranian Kurds from using the Kurdistan Region to launch attacks.
“The KRG will massively pay” for any US operation using the Kurdistan Region, Hassaniyan said. “I feel really sorry for them to be under pressure from all sides.”
At this point, the situation is extremely chaotic, with the US and Israel continuing to pound targets in Iranian Kurdistan, the parties reportedly ready to begin attacks on the ground, and government officials around the world on edge.
Winthrop Rodgers is a journalist and analyst based in Sulaymaniyah in Iraq's Kurdistan Region. He focuses on politics, human rights, and political economy.
Follow him on Twitter and Instagram: @wrodgers2
Edited by Charlie Hoyle
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