Kurdistan

Iran's attack on Kurdistan may signal new phase in Tehran's regional drone warfare - analysis

Iran’s drone strike on the Kurdistan Region may showcase new capabilities while warning Erbil and Washington that Tehran is willing to redraw regional red lines.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.
Nechirvan Barzani, President of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, gives a joint press conference with France's Foreign Minister in Arbil, the regional capital, on February 5, 2026.

Iran's drone strike on Kurds may be warning over Trump administration's backchannel, analyst says

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party, known as PAK take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Iranian drones target Iraq's Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani's office

Nechirvan Barzani, the regional president of Iraqi Kurdistan, delivers a speech after casting his ballot in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi's northern autonomous Kurdish region, on November 11, 2025.

Iraqi Kurdistan emerges as a key diplomatic bridge between US and Iran - analysis


Spreading Kurdish militant attacks pressure Iran as it navigates fragile US diplomacy - analysis

The clashes appear to have taken place in several towns and cities in western Iran’s Kurdish region.

Members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) participate in a military drill in an outpost near Erbil, Kurdistan region of Iraq on January 15, 2026.

Senior IRGC Navy officer dies in car crash as insurgencies escalate across western Iran

This comes after four members of Iran's IRGC were killed, and several others were wounded in what the IRGC described as "terrorist" shootings in western Iran on the same day as the crash.

 A man looks through a screen during a state funeral service in Enqelab Square, for military commanders and others killed in the recent war with Israel on June 28, 2025 in Tehran, Iran. Israel and and Iran traded daily aerial attacks over a 12-day period until a ceasefire took effect on June 24.

Is a new insurgency brewing? Kurdish rebels clash with IRGC in major border escalation - analysis

Tasnim News, which is an IRGC-affiliated network, reported that “two members of Iran’s IRGC were killed and two others were injured in an ‘armed terrorist attack.'"

Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG) run across a street in Raqqa, Syria, July 3, 2017.

Marco Rubio in UAE warns Iran-backed militias in Iraq threaten regional stability

Washington has used a combination of sanctions, terrorist designations, and rewards for information on militia leaders.

 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio takes part in a media briefing during the 58th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on July 10, 2025.

Will Iraq finally help protect Kurdistan's oil fields from drone attacks? - analysis

For Iraq, it doesn’t seem to matter if the Kurdistan Region is attacked, because then the region can’t sell oil or provide itself with gas for electricity.

Members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) participate in a military drill in an outpost near Erbil, Kurdistan region of Iraq on January 15, 2026.

Drone attack reported in Iraq's Kurdistan region, as US-Iran tensions grow

The attack “caused extensive damage to the building, but no casualties were reported. No party has claimed responsibility so far,” local media reported.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party, known as PAK take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq.

Iran threatening Kurdish opposition groups in Iraq as it strikes Israel - analysis

One of Iran’s key strategies for maintaining regional influence is not to lose its hold over Iraq, leading to strikes against Kurdish Iranian opposition groups in Iraq.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party, known as PAK take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Iran increases checkpoints in Kurdish region as minority group disproportionally executed

Recent events, including the January demonstrations that were violently suppressed by the regime, have also seen Iran’s Kurdish community disproportionately affected by state violence.

A view shows the outskirts of an Iranian Kurdish military facility north of Erbil, Iraq, on March 11, 2026, after it was struck by an Iranian drone.

Iran relentlessly targets Kurdish opposition in northern Iraq despite regional ceasefire - analysis

The attacks illustrate how Iran is seeking to keep up the pressure on Kurdish opposition groups. Many of these groups have forces and bases in the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq.

A member of Komala of the Toilers of Kurdistan stands while holding a machine gun at a mountain base in Khalifan near Erbil, Iraq's Kurdistan region, on March 12, 2026.

Are Iranian-backed militias in Iraq really ready to hand over weapons? - analysis

A Kataib Hezbollah spokesperson said he “praised what he described as a decision by ‘[armed] brothers not involved in the Islamic Resistance [of Iraq]’ to end their armed activities."

Members of the Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah attend the funeral of their members, who were killed in an airstrike that targeted a Hashd al‑Shaabi headquarters near the western al‑Qaim district on the Syrian border, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Baghdad, Iraq, March 2, 2026.