MESOP FOCUS : Tehran Government Threatens Iranian Kurdish Peshmerga / Iran unhappy Kurdish opposition fighting IS militants in northern Iraq

ERBIL – 3 June 2015 – The Islamic Republic of Iran is trying to convince Iranian Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) forces to cease fighting Islamic State (IS).Commander of PAK Forces Shamal Pirani told BasNews that the Iranian government is concerned about PAK forces who fight alongside Kurdistan Region Peshmerga. Pirani told BasNews, “The Iranian intelligence service makes phone calls directly to our Peshmerga, trying to convince them to leave the fight against IS and return to Iran.” He also revealed that the Iranian government threatens the families of Peshmerga in Iran and orders them to convince their relatives to return, “A few Peshmerga have left the fight and gone back to Iran as they have been promised amnesty.” Iranian Kurdish opposition parties have assisted in the fight against IS since the jihadists threatened the borders of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in June 2014.