Kurdish Forces Open a Second Front in NW Iran

On Day 5, Kurdish militia forces — primarily PJAK and Komala, with KDPI elements — crossed the border from Iraqi Kurdistan into Iran's West Azerbaijan and Kurdistan provinces. By Day 6, they are holding at least three district centres near Piranshahr. The IRGC's 44th Armoured Division launched a counterattack but was repelled. This is the first time non-state forces have held Iranian territory since 1979. Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces are on standby at the border; the US has stated it neither encourages nor discourages cross-border operations, which observers read as tacit acceptance. The PMF in Iraq has responded by firing rockets toward Kurdish positions near Sulaymaniyah, threatening to escalate the conflict inside Iraq.

Key facts

• •PJAK and Komala forces hold three district centres in West Azerbaijan province
• •IRGC 44th Armoured Division counterattack repelled near Piranshahr
• •First non-state forces holding Iranian territory since 1979
• •Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga on standby at border
• •US: neither encouraging nor discouraging cross-border operations
• •PMF retaliates with rockets at Kurdish positions near Sulaymaniyah