Mossad and CIA covert operation armed Kurdish militias to topple Iranian regime - report
The joint intelligence initiative was aborted by President Trump after intense diplomatic pressure from Turkish President Erdogan, stopping the flow of seized Hamas and Hezbollah weaponry
Israel's intelligence agency, the Mossad, reportedly orchestrated a covert operation to supply arms and military aid to Kurdish militias in an effort to destabilize and ultimately topple the Iranian government.
According to recent investigative reports in Israeli media, a significant portion of the transferred weaponry consisted of stockpiles originally seized by the Israel Defense Forces during military operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The clandestine assistance extended far beyond standard weapons shipments. Intelligence sources indicate that various Iranian Kurdish opposition groups received substantial financial backing, logistical vehicles, and a wide array of military hardware, including small arms, ammunition, anti-tank missiles, grenades, and mortar shells.
The logistical push was intended to significantly enhance the combat readiness of the militias to spark a broader internal uprising against Tehran.
The operation was originally designed as a joint venture with the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Mossad chief David Barnea had previously presented the multi-layered strategy to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior officials in Washington before the outbreak of regional hostilities.
The primary objective of the joint intelligence framework was to build up Kurdish paramilitary capabilities along Iran's borders, creating a viable ground threat that could force a collapse of the Islamic Republic's central authority. Netanyahu heavily favored the proposal, confidently asserting that the Iranian regime would eventually fall and would never recover its former regional influence.
However, the ambitious program was never fully realized and has since been completely abandoned due to shifting political dynamics in Washington. U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly pulled the plug on the joint operation and canceled the planned incursions following intense diplomatic pressure from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Ankara fiercely opposed any initiative that could empower Kurdish armed factions or potentially lead to Kurdish autonomy in the region, warning the White House that such maneuvers would threaten Turkey's own national security. Faced with fierce objections from Turkey, logistical caution from top U.S. defense officials, and public media leaks, President Trump ordered an immediate halt to all arms and equipment transfers, effectively terminating the joint CIA-Mossad operation.