Israeli media: Erdoğan thwarted U.S.-backed plan to arm Iran's Kurdish groups

Israeli media outlets have reported a significant claim suggesting that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan played a pivotal role in thwarting a plan to arm Kurdish groups within Iran. The Jerusalem Post, citing security sources, alleges that Israel believed the United States would approve the plan, as it would avoid direct American military intervention in Iran.

The purported scheme involved arming Iranian opposition and Iraqi Kurdish groups to counter the Tehran administration. According to the report, details of this plan were leaked to Turkey by certain officials within the White House. It is claimed that President Erdoğan then successfully persuaded then-U.S. President Donald Trump to cancel the operation.

Israeli sources reportedly accused U.S. Vice President JD Vance of leaking the plan, although Vance's spokesperson, Luke Schroeder, has denied these allegations. The plan detailed that Israel would not only provide a no-fly zone for the Kurdish groups but also offer air support against Iranian forces attempting to suppress any advances. Reports suggest Israel intended to supply weapons seized from Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon to these groups.

This report echoes previous statements by former head of Israeli military intelligence, Tamir Hayman. In a recent interview with PBS in the U.S., Hayman claimed that Israel was pursuing various covert plans to destabilize Iran, including inciting attacks by groups linked to the PKK and potentially installing former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in power. Hayman specifically mentioned that Erdoğan's intervention with President Trump was key to derailing the plan to arm Kurdish groups against the Iranian regime.