Iran has summoned Iraq's ambassador to protest the presence of Iranian opposition groups at an official ceremony in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, media reported on May 14. Quoting the Foreign Ministry, the ISNA news agency said that during the May 13 meeting Tehran expressed its "strong objection" to the invitation of members of "separatist groups" to the ceremony, "contrary to the recent security agreement between the Islamic republic and Iraq." Iran uses the words "separatist groups" to describe Kurdish factions opposed to the Iranian government, and considers them to be "terrorist" organizations.
Iran Summons Iraqi Envoy Over Kurdish Opposition Groups
A Kurdish peshmerga fighter inspects the damage following an Iranian cross-border attack in the area of Zargwez, where several exiled left-wing Iranian Kurdish parties maintain offices, around 15 kilometers from the Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah, in September 2022.