Iran’s Revolutionary Guards announced on Monday that they had targeted what they referred to as the “espionage headquarters” of Israel in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. The elite force claimed to have used ballistic missiles to destroy espionage centers and gatherings of anti-Iranian terrorist groups in the region, specifically naming Israel’s Mossad spy agency. Simultaneously, the Revolutionary Guards stated that they had launched attacks in Syria against the Islamic State.
Explosions were reported approximately 40 kilometers northeast of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region, near the U.S. consulate and civilian residences. At least four civilians were killed, and six others were injured in the strikes, according to the Kurdistan government’s security council, which condemned the attack as a “crime.” Among the casualties was Kurdish businessman Peshraw Dizayee, a multimillionaire close to the ruling Barzani clan, along with members of his family. One rocket struck Dizayee’s home, and others hit a senior Kurdish intelligence official’s house and a Kurdish intelligence center.
There were no reported impacts on U.S. facilities, and air traffic at Erbil airport was temporarily halted. Iranian officials accused the targeted area in Kurdistan of being a staging ground for Iranian separatist groups and agents of Israel.
The strikes also extended to Iran, where the Revolutionary Guards targeted the “perpetrators of terrorist operations,” including the Islamic State. This action follows recent explosions in Iran’s southeastern city of Kerman, for which the Islamic State claimed responsibility, resulting in nearly 100 deaths and numerous injuries during a memorial for top commander Qassem Soleimani.
While Iran has conducted strikes in Iraq’s northern Kurdistan region in the past, Tehran contends that the area serves as a base for Iranian separatist groups and Israeli agents. Baghdad has attempted to address Iranian concerns by relocating some members of these groups as part of a security agreement reached in 2023.
As tensions rise in the region, Israel has yet to provide immediate comments on the reported strikes. The situation underscores the complex geopolitical dynamics and conflicts playing out across the Middle East.
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