German troops to train Peshmerga fighters

Germany says it plans to send up to 100 troops to the northern Iraqi Kurdish city of Erbil to train Peshmerga forces fighting against the ISIL terrorist group.

The German government made the decision on Wednesday and the parliament is due to debate the mission in January.

The mission is expected to be approved by the German lawmakers since the government has a large majority in the parliament.

Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said, “We have to make sure the front line against [the ISIL] is held.”

Germany has already decided to provide Iraq’s Kurdish forces with weapons and other military gear worth USD 87.8 million (70 million euros).

Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen also said Berlin had “good experiences with the Peshmerga. They are reliable and motivated, but they need good equipment and good training.”

Peshmergas have so far forced Takfiri terrorists to retreat from the villages close to the northern city of Mosul.

After capturing some parts of Syria, the ISIL launched an offensive in Iraq in June and took control of Mosul, the country’s second largest city, before sweeping through parts of the country’s Sunni Arab heartland.

The Takfiri militants have been carrying out horrific acts of violence, including public decapitations and crucifixions, against Iraqi and Syrian communities such as Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, and Christians.

Senior Iraqi officials have repeatedly blamed Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and some other Persian Gulf Arab states for the growing terrorism in their country.