Iran launches fresh strikes on opposition group in Erbil
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a new drone attack for the second consecutive day, targeting a Kurdish opposition group in the Kurdistan Region’s Erbil province, the dissident group said in a statement on Thursday.
“Iran’s terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attacked the Balisan mountains with several suicide drones,” the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) said, adding that the attack on its Peshmerga units was carried out at “19:40 local time today, Thursday.”
The KDPI added that “today’s attack came after two separate attacks yesterday by the IRGC that targeted [KDPI’s] Zewie Spi and Girde Chal camps with multiple suicide drones.”
The Kurdish group said the latest attacks bring the total number of strikes on its bases in the Kurdistan Region to 120, “the majority of which have targeted civilian residential areas, hospitals, and schools.”
Iran’s continued targeting of opposition groups in the Kurdistan Region comes as US officials reportedly said Washington is close to agreeing on a one-page memorandum of understanding with Tehran to end the war and launch broader nuclear talks, according to a Wednesday report by the American website Axios.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the same day that “the US plan and proposal are still under review by Iran,” according to the state-affiliated Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), adding that Tehran will convey its position to the Pakistani side once the assessment is complete.
For his part, US President Donald Trump warned on Wednesday that Washington could resume bombing Iranian targets if no agreement is reached.
Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts, Iranian attacks on positions in the Kurdistan Region have continued since a Pakistan-mediated ceasefire between Iran and the US came into effect on April 8. While the truce reduced large-scale hostilities, lower-level attacks have persisted, particularly in the Kurdistan Region.