Iraq’s Kurdistan leader accuses Iran of drone attacks; Tehran denies the allegation

Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Monday accused Iran of launching drone attacks targeting his office and the residence of the head of the Kurdish intelligence agency Parastin. Tehran denied the allegation and suggested the incident may have been a “false flag” operation.

No casualties were reported in the attack, the security agency said. There has been no claim of responsibility for the attack.

“Based on information and investigations conducted by the Counter-Terrorism Directorate in the Kurdistan Region, it has been confirmed that my personal office and the residence of the President of the Parastin Agency were subjected today to Iranian attacks using drones,” Barzani said in a post on X.

Barzani condemned the “reckless and unacceptable attacks,” saying they constituted “a serious escalation and a direct threat to the security and stability of the region.”

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei rejected the accusation on Monday, telling state-run IRNA that reports of an attack on Barzani’s office were a “highly suspicious development” requiring vigilance and careful scrutiny.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi echoed that position in a separate post on X, condemning the attack while questioning who was responsible.

“Nothing justifies the reckless attack on PM Barzani’s office,” Araghchi wrote. “Kurdish friends should be vigilant against false-flag ploys to sow discord between neighbors.”

The KRG, based in Erbil, is the governing authority of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region, with its own president, parliament, cabinet and security forces known as the Peshmerga.