Israel Opens Way to Bring Kurdish Forces Into War Against Iran
Entering the conflict could have cross-border repercussions and the prospect is already alarming Iraq and Turkey.
Israel’s military is working to open the way for Kurdish forces to take up positions in Iran’s northwest in order to further shake Tehran’s authority, a move that is raising alarm bells in Turkey and Iraq.
Airstrikes have targeted Iranian military and law enforcement in the largely Kurdish region next to northern Iraq, where US aerial protection in 1991 helped establish a semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdish administration in Erbil. The Israel Defense Forces are working to ensure that armed Kurds feel secure enough to ultimately rise up against Tehran, according to a senior Israeli military official who is directly familiar with the matter.