Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in Iraqi Kurdistan appear to have stepped up their armed activities inside Iran in recent weeks, undermining the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) efforts to promote its upcoming independence referendum as a peaceful development. 

Iranian Kurdish fighters based in Iraq have repeatedly crossed the border into Iran and engaged in numerous clashes with Iranian security forces, leading to casualties on both sides. Iran has responded by shelling border areas with heavy artillery, causing huge fires, destroying wildlife and forcing many civilians to flee.

The recent clashes contradict claims by Iraqi Kurdish officials that the Sept. 25 independence referendum will not lead to instability. It also refutes their insistence that Erbil wishes to enjoy cordial relations with its neighbors, including Baghdad, Tehran and Ankara.

Iran has long urged KRG officials to restrain opposition groups that have been based in Iraqi Kurdistan since the early 1990s. Indeed, high-level Iranian delegations have repeatedly met with Iraqi Kurdish officials to convey discontent with the activities of such armed factions.