Two Countries Troubled by a Terror-Free Turkey and Region: Israel and Iran

Israel and Iran, despite their differences, are presented as sharing one feature in their hostility toward Turkey: the use of Kurdish militant organizations. The article says Israel has used the PKK/YPG in Syria, while Iran has used the PKK’s Iranian branch, PJAK. It argues that the regional balance has now changed, with Israel also supporting separatist groups in Iran alongside PJAK during unrest against the government.

The writer says the group Iran once used against Turkey is now turning against Iran, allegedly through Israeli intelligence contacts. Defense Minister Yaşar Güler had already complained about Tehran’s approach in a CNN Türk broadcast on May 2, 2024. He said Turkish officials were identifying PKK members and sharing their locations with Iranian authorities, only to be told that no one was present when Iran checked the sites.

Güler later described a further change after developments including operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria, Mossad assassinations inside Iran and attacks by the United States and Israel on nuclear facilities. According to the article, Iran’s view of PJAK shifted after the “Terror-Free Turkey, Terror-Free Region” process and the loss of Iranian influence following the December 8, 2024 revolution.

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When it comes to Turkey’s enemies, Israel and Iran share the use of terrorist groups against Turkey.

In remarks cited from December 19, 2025, Güler said PJAK members had expected Iran to lose its war with Israel and possibly undergo a change of government. When the conflict did not end as they wanted, he said, Iran launched an operation against PJAK and inflicted heavy losses. He also said PKK members had tried to move personnel and weapons from northern Iraq into Iran after announcing they would disarm, and that Turkish authorities had informed Iran of these movements.

The article notes that PJAK was the first PKK branch to reject Abdullah Öcalan’s February 27, 2025 call for the organization to dissolve. It says Iran has recognized PJAK’s nature but still does not support Turkey in ending its activities, unlike the Syrian administration’s move to take the integration process involving the Syrian Democratic Forces as far as dissolving the organization.

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My Iranian friends, look, they crossed from this point to the other side and went there. We are tracking them. We are watching them with drones. Our Iranian friends reply, ‘We looked there, there is no one there.’ This is not a pleasant approach. Of course, we are troubled.