KDPI claims to have downed 4 of 16 drones used by Iran in Kurdistan Region

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) Peshmerga claims to have taken down four Iranian drones out of 16 sent to the Kurdistan Region in the past few days, a top military commander of the party told Rudaw as Iran continues to target the party based in the Region. 

“This morning, IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) once again bombarded the Sidakan region, but there were no damages,” Kawa Bahrami, top Peshmerga commander of the KDPI, told Rudaw on Monday.

Bahrami claimed, in the past few days, the IRGC has attacked their Peshmerga with 16 drones, and they have been able to take down four of the drones.

The KDPI is a Kurdish party which has waged an on-and-off armed war against the Iranian government since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. It is based in the Kurdistan Region. 

Several armed Iranian Kurdish opposition parties based in the Kurdistan Region mountains are periodically shelled by Iran. They frequently clash with Iranian security forces in the Kurdish areas of western Iran.

In a statement from the KDPI on Monday, the party said that attacks have caused material damage to the property of civilians. 

“Bombing of Kurdistan mountainous regions started on Thursday, and Iran has made use of 16 suicide drones and have attacked the region more than 15 times with bombs and Katyusha rockets,” the KDPI statement reads. 

IRGC ground forces on Thursday confirmed they used “combat and suicide drones in the operation, as its smart artillery with pinpoint accuracy have targeted the positions of the terrorist groups with high precision,” IRGC-linked Tasnim news agency reported. 

Top commanders of the IRGC last week ratcheted up threats against the armed Kurdish parties and called on civilians in the Kurdistan Region to avoid areas where these groups have their bases because of a possible cross-border assault. Since the threats were made, the parties took precautions, dispersing their fighters and not staying fixed in one place.  

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson on Monday said that they had spoken to Iraqi officials about their operations in the Kurdistan Region. “This action is in response to the repeated attacks carried out by these groups near the Iranian border and against the Islamic Republic, and several border guards were martyred," Saeed Khatibzadeh said. 

Khatibzadeh said that in official meetings with Iraqi officials they have told them that the Iraqi territory should not be “abused” by the groups. "Iran is open to those who repent and return to the Islamic Republic.”

An armed Kurdish group, the Zagros Eagles, on Friday vowed Iran's "military aggression against the Kurdish people will be avenged." 

Iranian officials have called on the Iraqi government to take action against the Kurdish groups. Reacting to Iran’s threats, spokesperson for Iraq’s Joint Operations Command, Major General Tahsin al-Khafaji, said Iraq “will not allow anyone to threaten its security and safety,” and urged diplomacy. 

Additional reporting by Fuad Haghighi