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Kurdish armed groups based in the mountains of northern Iraq say they are prepared to fight Iran but believe a popular uprising inside the country should come before any armed intervention.
Members of the PJAK said they remain ready to resist the Iranian government while monitoring developments in the ongoing conflict.
PJAK is designated as a terrorist organization by Türkiye and Iran. It is widely recognized as the Iranian branch of the PKK terrorist organization and is linked to the Qandil-based leadership structure.
A senior PJAK militant said the group is prepared to resist if Kurdish communities are attacked.
“If there is an attack on the Kurdish people... then with every means... we are ready to resist as we always have,” he told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
He said the group believes it can achieve its goals without external support.
“I think we can achieve our rights without the help of the U.S. or any other country,” he said.
PJAK, like other Iranian Kurdish armed groups, operates bases in the mountains of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region and maintains hideouts in Kurdish-majority areas inside Iran.
Iran has designated Kurdish armed groups as terrorist organizations, and they have previously fought Iranian security forces along the border.
In recent years, under pressure from authorities in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, the groups have largely refrained from armed activity.
Terrorist organization PJAK members said they believe a broader uprising inside Iran would be necessary before launching a large-scale armed campaign.
The group recently joined a coalition of Kurdish armed groups seeking to overthrow the Islamic Republic and achieve self-determination.
“We are ready to fight, especially after what they did 50 days ago,” PJAK member Shwan said, referring to the crackdown on anti-government protests in Iran that left thousands dead.
Another senior militant said the group believes a ground offensive would not be effective at this stage.
“From a strategic and tactical point of view, we believe it wouldn't be a good idea,” he said.
He said Iranian forces have strengthened their positions along the border.
“The most important thing is that the population itself becomes a driving force. There must be a popular uprising,” he said.
U.S. President Donald Trump previously said he would be “all for” a Kurdish offensive against Iran, but later said the U.S. does not want Kurdish armed groups to enter the conflict.
“We're not looking to the Kurds going in,” Trump said Saturday. “We don't want to make the war any more complex than it already is.”
The senior militant said PJAK has had contact with American officials but described it as political dialogue.
“The Americans are already in the area, and we have had a dialogue,” he said. “It was a political exchange... to get to know each other.”
He said the Kurdish movement seeks guarantees for a democratic system in Iran. “Who can say that, tomorrow, they won't support another dictator and bring him to power,” he said, referring to the U.S.
He said the goal is political change in Iran. “What is important... is to change this current darkness into a democratic Iran,” he said.
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