Six Kurdish fighters killed in IRGC ambush as clashes spread across western Iran

Kurdish separatists attempted Iran crossing from Iraq amid protests.(Mustafa Ozer/AFP via Getty Images)

Berenji identified the six Peshmerga as Karo Hormuziari, Fardin Changizi, Mohammad Khaki, Abdullah Mohammadpour, Twana Osmani and Mohammad Amin Bayezidi.He said the incident took place Wednesday night in the village of Qizqapan, near Piranshahr, and said the PDKI unit was on a “political and organizational mission” when it was “ambushed by a large and heavily equipped IRGC force.”

“This should be understood in the broader context of the Islamic Republic’s continued repression in Iranian Kurdistan and its repeated attacks on Iranian Kurdish civilian camps in theKurdistan Region of Iraq, even during ceasefire and negotiation periods,” Berenji said.“The regime has increased pressure on Kurdish communities because it understands that Iranian Kurds remain among the most organized and determined democratic forces inside Iran.”

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The PDKI, is one of Iran’s oldest Kurdish opposition movements.The group has been involved in decades of intermittent conflict with the Islamic Republic, while Tehran long has viewed Kurdish armed groups as separatist threats, while others describe it as a historic, centrist and nationalist Iranian Kurdish opposition group that Iran has targeted for years, including through assassinations of its leaders decades ago.

The Kurds are one of the largest stateless ethnic groups in the Middle East, with communities spread across Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.In Iran, many Kurds live in the country’s mountainous west and northwest, where Kurdish opposition groups have long accused Tehran of repression, executions, forced assimilation and military crackdowns.Iranian authorities view armed Kurdish factions as separatist or “terrorist threats.”

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The latest clash followed several days ofviolence in western Iran.A similar incident near Piranshahr was reported by Iranian state media Tuesday, with the IRGC saying it had killed six members of what it called an “opposition and separatist group.” 

Two IRGC members were killed and two wounded in a shooting in Kermanshah Province Monday evening, an attack claimed by a newly formed Kurdish armed group seeking retaliation for the IRGC’s role in suppressing the 2022–2023 protest movement, according to the Kurdish rights group Hengaw.

Iran also appeared to be expanding pressure on Kurdish opposition groups beyond PJAK, the Kurdistan Free Life Party, after days of clashes between PJAK and the IRGC, The Jerusalem Post reported Thursday. 

Berenji said the latest clash was not a response to ongoing U.S.–Iranmemorandum of understanding negotiations, which remain unresolved as talks continue without a finalized agreement.

WAVE OF ATTACKS ON IRAN’S IRGC RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT RENEWED KURDISH INSURGENCY

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Vice President JD Vance (center) speaks with Army Chief and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir (left) and Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar after arriving for the US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad April 11, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

“The Kurdish struggle for freedom, democracy, and national rights predates the current negotiations and is not dependent on them,” Berenji said.“At the same time, any agreement that ignores the Kurdish question, the regime’s attacks on Kurdish civilians, and the repression inside Iran will not bring real stability.”

Gly said Kurdish anger has been compounded by language in the U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding that critics interpret as Washington agreeing not to interfere in Iran’s internal affairs.

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People take part in a march in Erbil, Iraq, on April 21, 2026, expressing support for the unity of Iranian Kurdish parties and condemning Iranian missile strikes and military actions against Kurdish groups in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. (Rasul Gawhari / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

“This sentence has taken every Iranian opposition group the wrong way, especially the Kurds,” Gly said. 

He argued that even during negotiations with hostile powers, the United States should not abandon its public support for freedom movements, invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s approach to the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Gly said he does not see clear evidence that Kurdish groups have gained major new military capabilities, but said the perception of Iran’s strength has changed.

“What has changed is the perception of weakness of Iran,�“They are less afraid of the regime.”

The new violence carries broader significance for Washington because Iranian Kurdish opposition groups were recently discussed as a possibleground pressure pointagainst Tehran. 

U.S.officials and Kurdish groups had discussed a potential military operation against Iranian security forces in western Iran, Reuters reported in March, while a separate report saidIsrael was backingIranian Kurdish plans to seize Iranian border areas, though such an operation would likely require U.S.and Israeli support.

But those expectations quickly faltered.In April, Kurdish fighters ultimatelystayed out of the warbecause of mixed signals from Washington and Israel, as well as Iranian threats and strikes against Kurdish positions in Iraq.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoganurged President Donald Trump during the conflict to prevent Kurdish forces from launching a ground operation inside Iran, reflecting Ankara’s longstanding opposition to Kurdish armed movements gaining ground in the region, Reuters also reported. 

During the conflict, Trump told Reuters he would be “all for it” if the Kurds wanted to move against Iran and said their objective should be “to win,” but Kurdish commanders were frustrated by the lack of a clear U.S.or Israeli strategy.

Berenji said the PDKI does not seek chaos, but insisted Kurdish forces have the right to defend themselves.

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Naval units from Iran and Russia simulate the rescue of a hijacked vessel during joint drills at the Port of Bandar Abbas in Hormozgan, Iran, on Feb.19, 2026.(Iranian Army/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“We seek a democratic, pluralistic, secular, and federal Iran where all nations and communities can live with dignity and rights,” he said.“But the Kurdish people also have the right to defend themselves against repression, intimidation, and attacks by the IRGC.”

�s mission to the United Nations for comment.

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