Gen. Mojtaba Ja'afari, advisor to the commander of the Iranian army, revealed Monday that the Iranian Army's Division 23 'Nohad' commando unit conducted 14 clandestine ground operations in the Sulaymaniyah and Erbil areas of Iraqi Kurdistan against Iranian Kurdish opposition groups. According to Ja'afari, the operations killed and captured activists, with no Iranian casualties. The claims are unverified and based on a single Iranian official source.
Gen. Mojtaba Ja'afari, a senior advisor to the commander of the Iranian army, revealed Monday evening that the Iranian Army's Division 23 "Nohad" commando unit conducted 14 covert ground operations in the Sulaymaniyah and Erbil areas of Iraqi Kurdistan against Iranian Kurdish opposition groups. In a statement carried by Iranian Telegram channels, Ja'afari described the operations as "a new secret that no one knows," claiming that fighters killed and captured activists and returned without casualties. The identification of the specific unit as "Nohad" adds specificity to earlier claims that have emerged throughout the day.
The development follows a series of claims from Ja'afari reported earlier Monday. At 14:13 Jerusalem, initial reports stated that the Iranian Army's "Takavar" special forces unit had conducted 14 missions in Iraqi Kurdistan. By 17:51 Jerusalem, The Zioneer reported that Ja'afari claimed the Iranian Army's Airborne Special Forces Brigade 23 had conducted 14 ground operations over the past two months, killing and kidnapping Kurdish opposition activists, and that two activists were kidnapped from Sulaymaniyah the previous day. The latest update identifies the unit as Division 23 "Nohad" and includes a direct quote from the general.
All claims remain unverified and originate from a single Iranian official source. The Zioneer has previously documented Iran's sustained campaign against Kurdish opposition groups based in Iraqi Kurdistan, including drone and missile strikes against Kurdish bases in Iraq, as well as earlier reports of covert ground operations. The latest claims, if verified, would represent a significant expansion of Iran's ground footprint inside Iraqi territory.
No independent confirmation of the operations, their timing, or their outcomes has been provided. The identities of the alleged killed or captured activists have not been disclosed.
4 developments
- StrongIranian report: 65th Division special forces conducted 11 ground ops in northern Iraq within past 24 hours
- StrongIran claims strikes hit Kurdish opposition headquarters in Erbil
- DevelopingUnverified report: Iran destroying Kurdish forces in Iraq, thousands dead
- StrongIRGC strikes Kurdish opposition bases in northern Iraq's Sulaymaniyah province
Source and signal
- Open-source intake