Iran's missile attacks on Erbil were "due to talks on gas transit with Israeli participation"

Several Iraqi and Turkish officials say that one of the main reasons for the IRGC's missile attacks on Erbil is the Iraqi Kurdistan Region's plan to export gas to Türkiye and Europe with the help of Israel.

About two weeks ago, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the missile attacks on Erbil, claiming that the IRGC's "point-blank" missiles had targeted the strategic center of the "Zionists."

Most of the 12 missiles fired by the Revolutionary Guards targeted the villa of a Kurdish capitalist active in the energy sector of the Kurdistan Regional Government.

An Iraqi security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that two meetings between officials and energy sector experts were recently held at the villa with the aim of transporting Kurdistan gas to Turkey through a new pipeline.

A senior Iranian security official also told Reuters that the attacks were a "multi-purpose message to many people and groups" and that no Israeli plans, from the energy sector to agriculture, would be realized.

Two Turkish officials, while confirming talks between American and Israeli officials on the subject of transporting Iraqi gas to Türkiye and Europe, have expressed ignorance about the location of these talks.

An anonymous Iraqi security official and a former US official familiar with the plan told Reuters that Mr. Bazkarim Barzanji, the owner of the villa destroyed by the IRGC, was active in the development of this new gas export pipeline.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry has denied any knowledge of the matter, and Mr. Barzanji did not respond to Reuters' questions.

The office of Nechirvan Barzani, the president of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, has denied that any talks between American and Israeli officials were taking place at Mr. Barzanji's villa. The Iraqi Kurds say Israel has no military or official presence in the region they control.

In recent months, Turkey and Israel have taken steps to improve ties and cooperation in the energy sector. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last month that his country and Israel could work together to transport Israeli gas to Europe. He has also met with the Israeli president and the head of the Kurdistan Regional Government.

Two-thirds of Kurdistan's oil pipelines are controlled by the Russian company Rosneft, and the remaining one-third is managed under a lease agreement by the "Car Group" company, headed by CEO Bazkarim Barzanji.

The IRGC's missile attacks on Erbil were condemned by the heads of Iraq's three armed forces, political parties and figures in Iraqi Kurdistan, and major countries in the region, such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt.

Senior officials in the Joe Biden administration also strongly condemned these attacks as a violation of Iraqi sovereignty and a threat to civilians, emphasizing that no American citizens or facilities were harmed in these attacks and that there were no attacks against the Washington consulate in Erbil.

Source: Voice of America