Kurdistan
The moment a drone is intercepted over Erbil’s Soran administration on April 22, 2026. Photo: Submitted
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US-led coalition shot down a drone over the Soran administration in northeastern Erbil late Wednesday night, local officials told Rudaw, as attacks continue on the Kurdistan Region despite the extension of the fragile US-Iran ceasefire.
Halgurd Sheikh Najib, head of the Soran administration, reported that “between 10:30 pm and 11:00 pm [local time] on Wednesday evening, drones were seen in the sky over Soran,” adding that “a drone was shot down and neutralized near the eastern Barziwa area by fighter jets of the [US-led Global] Coalition [to Defeat the Islamic State].”
The US and Israel launched a preemptive air campaign against Iran on February 28, targeting more than 17,000 sites across the country over six weeks of hostilities before the warring sides agreed to a Pakistan-mediated ceasefire on April 8. The truce halted fighting for two weeks and paved the way for talks.
Despite the extension of the ceasefire on Tuesday, the Kurdistan Region has continued to face drone and missile threats. Since the onset of the war in late February, the Region has been targeted by 732 such attacks, resulting in 21 deaths and 99 injuries.
The attacks on the Kurdistan Region have been claimed by the Iranian military, namely the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and Iraqi armed groups aligned with the Tehran-led ‘Axis of Resistance,’ which say they are targeting US interests and Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in the Region.
Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said on Saturday that attacks by Iran and its allied Iraqi armed groups on the Region, even during the truce, have killed at least five people and injured others.
Earlier on Wednesday, four drones struck a base belonging to an Iranian opposition group in Erbil province, wounding several people. The Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), which has been repeatedly targeted, said in a statement: “Their [Iran’s] actions once again show a preference for escalation over regional stability.”
US President Trump on Tuesday announced an extension of the ceasefire with Iran at Pakistan’s request, to allow Iranian “leaders and representatives [to] come up with a unified proposal” for an agreement, while directing US forces to remain “ready and able.”
However, diplomatic efforts have stalled, as second-round talks in Islamabad on Wednesday failed to materialize after Iranian officials signaled a no-show. Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the IRGC, cited a source on Tuesday as saying that “continued hostile US actions,” make further negotiations “a waste of time.”
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