A bomb exploded in Erbil, Kurdistan yesterday around 4:00 pm local time in what appears to be a targeted attack. The bomb was placed under the chassis of a car belonging to two Peshmerga from PDKI (Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan) and was detonated remotely. The Peshmerga injured were a father and son and remain in critical condition at a hospital in Erbil. The PDKI stated, “Iran has threatened to carry out terrorist attacks against the PDKI,” in response to the attack.

The father, Salah Rahmani 52, and his son, Sabah Rahmani 33, were both veteran Peshmerga and current members of the PDKI. Sabah has lost both his legs in the blast according to a PDKI representative. The PDKI also reported that Salah had, “received several threats from Iran’s notorious intelligence agency,” prior to the attack.

The PDKI is an Iranian Kurdish based organization that directly opposes the Iranian regime and is based out of Iraqi Kurdistan, they have their own reserve of Peshmerga that serve in numerous capacities in support of the PDKI’s mission. The PDKI have been steadily increasing their efforts in counter-terror operations over the years. According to officials, the armed wing of the organization have, “foiled numerous terrorist attacks by the Iranian regime.”

The Iranian regime has recently weathered widespread uprising in the form of mass protest by its citizens. The protests were in response to radical regime policies and government corruption felt throughout the populace. Several female citizens were imprisoned for publicly removing their hijab and standing in busy parts of urban centers as an act of defiance. Iran also recently sent its PMU (Popular Mobilization Units) to Kirkuk in support of Hasdt al-Shaabi and the Iraqi government occupation of the city. It’s unclear as to what extent the PDKI has played a part in the anti-Iran sentiment. No doubt they played a part though, to have landed on their radar and earned an assassination attempt.

Feature Image Courtesy of WikiMedia