An alliance of six Iranian Kurdish groups backed by the United States is preparing to enter Iran to join in the US-Israeli campaign to dislodge the Iranian regime, despite threats from Iran and growing opposition from regional heavyweight Turkey, well-placed sources told Al-Monitor.

The sources declined to provide a date but said the Iranian Kurdish forces, which had been supplied with weapons and other equipment, could cross “within days.”

The move has been widely anticipated since Sunday, when President Donald Trump called Iraqi Kurdish leaders Masoud Barzani and Bafel Talabani to discuss the matter. The sources said the State Department had not been informed about the calls in advance.

The sources briefing Al-Monitor revealed that Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the senior-most figure in Iraqi Kurdistan, was — despite misgivings — no longer opposed to the plan, which is meant to result in the armed Iranian Kurdish groups taking charge of Kurdish-majority areas across the border. Even if the Iraqi Kurdish leaders had wanted to, they would likely have been unable to withstand US pressure to facilitate the infiltration operation. Their own forces will not be involved in the fighting inside Iran, the sources said.