ERBIL, Iraq, June 16 (UPI) -- Kurdish military commanders denied reports that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp had established checkpoints inside Iraqi territory.
Reports in various news outlets circulated Monday suggesting the Iranian Revolutionary Guard had set up as many as eight checkpoints more than a mile inside Kurdish territory in Iraq.
An additional 100 checkpoints were allegedly established along the border with the Kurdish territories in Iraq to prevent smugglers from bringing prohibited goods to Iran.
Maj. Gen. Jabbar Yawir, a spokesman for the Peshmerga, the Kurdish military, described the reports as "fabricated" attempts to create "problems" between Iran and Iraq, the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat reports.
Both countries enjoy a special relationship following the ouster of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Many of the current political leaders in Baghdad had lived in Iran during Saddam's leadership. Meanwhile, the Iranian military has fought Kurdish rebels in recent weeks as part of a regional push to control separatist activity.
Yawir, however, discounted further claims that there were any special arrangements with the central government in Baghdad or the Kurdistan Regional Government on Iranian military checkpoints.
