Clash Between Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party Forces and IRGC in Paveh

The Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party, led by Mostafa Hejri, reported on Friday that its forces clashed with members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Paveh County, Kermanshah Province. The party stated on its website that the clash occurred at 8 AM on Friday, October 20, in the recreational area of "Bidmiri" and lasted until 11 AM. According to the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party, five members from both sides and one civilian were killed in this clash. The IRGC and other official sources have not yet reacted to this news. However, the analytical news website Bulletin News published a report on the same day mentioning a "heavy military clash" between the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party and the IRGC. This media outlet did not mention any potential casualties among the IRGC or civilian citizens, only reporting that two members of the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party, named Shahou Veysi and Zaniyar Islami, were killed. Their names were also mentioned in the report by the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party, which stated they were killed in the clash with the IRGC forces. The party also announced that the IRGC suffered three casualties in this clash, and a civilian named Farshad Chachani was also a victim of this incident. On Sunday, October 8, the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party had also reported an attack by an IRGC drone on its forces in the "Koodo Mountains" in the Iran-Iraq border area. On September 17, the IRGC targeted the headquarters of the Iranian Kurdish Democratic Party, led by Mostafa Mouloudi, in Iraq with missile attacks that reportedly left 14 dead and at least 40 injured. Iraq described this action as a "violation of its sovereignty." Last week, the IRGC also conducted a drill in the mountainous region of Shahoudar in Kurdistan Province. Since 2016, following the increase in activities of armed Kurdish opposition parties against the Islamic Republic in Iranian Kurdistan, clashes between the forces of these parties and the IRGC have intensified. The Islamic Republic refers to armed opposition groups in the western provinces of Iran, including armed Kurdish parties, as "terrorist groups" or "anti-revolutionaries." However, these groups declare that the aim of their armed conflict with the Islamic Republic is to "defend the rights of Kurds."