The Rest Is Classified 135. Is The CIA Arming Kurdish Militias In Iran?
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Mar 7, 2026 
Clarissa Ward, CNN chief international correspondent with two decades reporting from front lines, files live dispatches from northern Iraq. She recounts drone and missile strikes near Erbil and the reporting around alleged CIA arms flows to Iranian Kurdish groups. Conversations cover Kurdish aims, regional fallout, leaks and possible Israeli involvement. The overall picture is tense, uncertain and potentially destabilizing.
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U.S. Presence In Erbil Is Still Under Attack
- U.S. troops remain in Erbil and have been targeted by drone and missile strikes.
- Clarissa Ward reports strikes focusing on Erbil airport, the U.S. consulate, and renewed attacks on Iranian Kurdish camps near the Iran border.
Kurds Are Many Distinct Political Actors
- Kurds number 30–40 million across Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran and are not a single unified political actor.
- Clarissa explains six different Iranian Kurdish groups operate from Iraqi Kurdistan with divergent goals ranging from separatism to federalism.
Alleged Plan To Arm Iranian Kurdish Groups Emerged From White House
- Reporting indicates a White House-driven idea to arm Iranian Kurdish groups to foment unrest in Iran has reached the CIA.
- Clarissa Ward found senior Iranian Kurdish officials saying a U.S. and Israeli-supported ground offensive is being discussed, though specifics are unclear.