Iranian influence turns PKK-weakened Kurdistan into regional battleground
Vehicles allegedly carrying Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) commanders continue to be targeted in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq amid claims Iran controls both the PKK and Shiite-led forces in oil-rich and disputed Kirkuk.
ERBIL — Attacks continue on vehicles carrying alleged Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq as some claim the group is taking orders from Iran now.
The latest vehicle targeted was a Toyota Land Cruiser in the Ranya district of the Sulaimaniyah governorate on Aug. 1. One person was reportedly injured and the other fled, according to local media outlet Kurdistan 24. A local official told Kurdistan 24 that two PKK members, “including a suspected top official, were believed to have been in the vehicle.”
Sulaimaniyah is the eastern part of the KRI along the border with Iran. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) is strong in this region and known for having more sympathizers with the PKK than other areas of the region in which the rival Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is stronger.
In recent years, the KDP and many others in the KRI have demanded more openly for the PKK — which is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union — to leave the region.
