Mossad reportedly gave Kurds arms seized from Hamas, Hezbollah, to use against Iranian regime

In an effort to bring about the fall of the Iranian regime, the Mossad spy agency, working with the CIA, carried out an initiative to arm Kurdish militias with weapons seized in conflicts with Hamas and Hezbollah, according to Hebrew media reports.

The reports by Channel 12 and Ynet, which did not cite sources, emerge days after David Barnea stepped down as Mossad chief after five years in the role.

Under the plan, the Kurds received financial assistance and vehicles, and were armed with small arms, anti-tank launchers, grenades and mortar bombs. The Mossad was responsible for delivering the weapons and ammunition to the Kurds, the reports say.

There have been reports since late March of a US-Israeli plan for Kurdish militia forces to enter Iran early in the campaign against Tehran, in the hope of spurring a rebellion that would bring down the Islamic Republic.

But leaks to the media, lobbying by international actors — including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — and wariness among the Kurds themselves reportedly led US President Donald Trump to pull the plug on the idea.

Trump has himself said that the US tried to transfer weapons to protesters against the Iranian regime via the Kurds, but appeared to accuse Kurdish separatists of keeping the weapons for themselves.