The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is reportedly helping Kurdish forces along the Iran–Iraq border to start an uprising against Tehran, according to sources cited by CNN.

The Trump administration has reportedly held active talks with Iranian opposition groups and Iraqi Kurdish leaders about supplying them with military support. The talks come amid reports that Israel could expand its campaign into a potential ground offensive inside Iran, possibly with Kurdish support.

The development comes as fighting between Israel and Iran intensifies, following the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and a series of Israeli and U.S. airstrikes across Iran.

A senior Iranian Kurdish official told Axios that President Donald Trump held calls with Masoud Barzani and Bafel Talabani, leaders of Iraq’s two dominant Kurdish factions, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). 

According to Kurdish officials, Trump “clarified the objectives of the U.S. in the current war” during those talks.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to discuss what was talked about during the calls but said Trump “has been in contact with many allies and partners in the region throughout the past several days.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly encouraged Washington to deepen ties with Kurdish groups, arguing they could play a decisive role in destabilizing Iran’s regime. 

“It is the general view, and certainly Netanyahu’s view, that the Kurds are going to rise up,” one U.S. official familiar with the matter told Axios.

Six days before the start of the war, five Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in Iraq announced the formation of a joint front, the Coalition of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan,  pledging to fight against Tehran’s rule.