Kurdish forces from various factions in Iraq have banded together and are planning an invasion of Iran to help topple the regime, with joint backing from the United States and Israel.

The forces plan to invade the northwestern part of the country with the hope that the regime will feel increased pressure and the population will be encouraged to engage in an uprising that will overwhelm the regime.

The newly formed Kurdish coalition, which was formed about a week before the war started, is called the Coalition of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan and embraces among its ranks thousands of fighters. The coalition has been sending groups of soldiers into Iran over the past several weeks to train for a possible ground offensive.

Two unnamed U.S. officials said the group has received support from the CIA and the Mossad.

“The war started with a kinetic phase by the U.S. and Israeli militaries, but as the war continues there will be other efforts by the Mossad and the CIA,” an Israeli official said.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied U.S. involvement.

“We’re not arming the Kurds. But you never know with the Israelis,” he told Congress in a closed-door briefing.

A U.S. official said the plan to involve the Kurds originated with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Mossad, with the CIA joining the plan later.

“The problem is that the Kurdish Iranian factions don’t have enough military power and could end up as cannon fodder,” the official said.

However, the White House also denied involvement, while the CIA and the Mossad declined to comment.

That said, two Kurdish leaders in Iraq, Masoud Barzani and Bafel Talabani, discussed the plan with President Donald Trump in a phone call, expressing hesitancy in carrying out a ground offensive in Iran. Trump also spoke by phone to Mustafa Hijri, the leader of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI).

Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, spoke to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, raising his concerns about a possible ground operation by the Kurds. The Iranian foreign ministry issued a statement saying that it had received assurances from Iraq that it would not support a ground incursion.

“The Iraqi prime minister emphasized that the Iraqi government will under no circumstances allow any threat to be directed at Iran from Iraqi territory,” the statement read.

While Kurdish factions denied on Wednesday that they had begun the ground offensive, they indicated that they might begin the operation within a week.