BySETH J. FRANTZMANJULY 2, 2026 11:51After days of reported clashes between the Kurdish Free Life Party (PJAK) and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Iranian regime is striking at other Kurdish opposition groups.“Two drones targeted a base belonging to the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) in Erbil's Degala sub-district late Wednesday,” according to Kurdish media outlet Rudaw.It is likely that Iran is seeking to strike KDPI to prevent it from joining clashes alongside PJAK.The large and armed PJAK is considered to have well-hidden bases in rural areas, with Iran seeking to defeat one group at a time.“The Kurdistan Region has been hit by at least 865 drones and missiles since late February, as total numbers continue to rise,” Rudaw reported.A Kurdish fighter from the Iranian Kurdish armed faction Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK) stands with his rifle at a site near the Iraqi border with Iran in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on March 8, 2026. (credit: AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES)"A short while ago, our party [base] in Degala was attacked by two drones," KDPI told Rudaw on Wednesday. “At that time, no Peshmerga were present at the targeted location, which is why the attack resulted in no casualties.”The centrist and nationalist KDPI is a historic Kurdish Iranian opposition group, which Iran has targeted for many years, assassinating its leaders decades ago.Rudaw: Refugee camps attacked by drones“The attack comes as Iran has continued to target the headquarters and refugee camps of Iranian Kurdish opposition parties in the Kurdistan Region, even after hostilities with the US and Israel eased,” Rudaw noted. “Nearly 20 drones have targeted refugee camps and the headquarters of Iranian Kurdish parties across the Kurdistan Region over the past month alone.”Meanwhile, Iranian forces also killed five Kurdish members of the KDPI in what has been described as an “ambush by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)” in western Iran.The five fighters were killed “in clashes in an area called Ghezqapan near Piranshahr city,” KDPI told Rudaw.There have been other clashes in recent days in Mahabad and other western Iranian cities and towns with Kurdish residents.“Iranian media reported heavy clashes in the Piranahsha and Sardasht areas between the IRGC’s Hamza Sayyid Al Shuhada forces and Kurdish fighters, but did not provide more details about casualties,” Rudaw reported.Human rights group notes high death tollThe Hengaw human rights organization, which covers Kurdish issues in Iran, noted new details on Wednesday about clashes in Iran.“The death toll from the armed clash at the Baneh checkpoint has risen to three after Afshin Fatahi, a member of the Iranian security forces, died from his injuries in Sanandaj (Sine)," the organization said. "Hengaw previously reported on the clash between the East Kurdistan Defense Units (YRK), the armed wing of the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), and Iranian security forces in Baneh.”“Afshin Fatahi, a member of Iran's Law Enforcement Command (Faraja) from Bijar, died from his injuries on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in Sanandaj after receiving treatment for wounds sustained in the clash at the Baneh checkpoint,” the report continued."Fatahi's death brings the number of Iranian security forces members killed in the clash to three," the report added. "Those killed have been identified as Afshin Fatahi of Bijar and Mohammad Hossein Beigi of Qorveh, both members of Faraja, and Mardin Ahmadi, a conscript soldier from Saqqez.”The Jerusalem Post reached out to a local source to confirm the recent clashes and also the rising tensions in the Kurdish regions of western Iran. Many Kurdish opposition groups are closely watching the developments. Follow us on Google