In an interview with FRANCE 24, Abdullah Mohtadi, secretary-general of the Iranian Kurdish opposition Komala party, said Kurds "can play a very significant role in making a breakthrough" in Iran. He pointed to "serious signs of weakness" among security forces in Kurdish regions of Iran and said "tens of thousands" of young people were ready to take up arms – without, he claimed, any foreign backing.
Speaking to FRANCE 24 from an undisclosed location, Mohtadi described the Kurds as "the most organised section of Iranian society," citing their track record in organising mass protests, the Woman, Life, Freedom movement and general strikes.
With peshmerga forces ready, he said, if "protected (and) supported enough by the United States, we can do a lot of things", adding that such a move "can be the beginning of the liberation of Iran."
'We have not been aided or helped by any foreign power yet'
Mohtadi denied receiving any foreign backing despite widespread reports of CIA and Mossad plans to arm Kurdish Iranian fighters and move them across the Iraqi border. "We have not been aided or helped by any foreign power yet," he said. He nevertheless expressed hope that Washington would "take into consideration the positive and constructive role that Kurds can play".
Finally, Mohtadi pushed back against Reza Pahlavi, the son the late shah, who has accused Kurdish groups of threatening Iran's territorial integrity. "The Kurdish parties are not for secession," he said, adding that Pahlavi "should have congratulated the Kurdish people, the Kurdish political parties, for getting united."
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