LONDON, June 23, 2015 – The British defense secretary Monday announced that, at the request of the Kurdish Regional Government, the U.K. will provide another $1 million of supplies to Kurdish Peshmerga forces.
Michael Fallon said in a statement that the U.K. has been providing extensive support to the government of Iraq in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
The equipment announced Monday will include medical supplies, such as tourniquets, bandage kits and dressings for wounds used to treat combat injuries.
The U.K. previously donated more than 50 tons of non-lethal equipment; 40 heavy machine guns; nearly half a million rounds of ammunition; and about 1,000 improvised explosive device, or IED, detectors. The U.K. has also delivered about 300 tons of weapons and ammunition on behalf of other donor nations.
In addition to the supplies announced Monday, the U.K. in the coming months is set to triple the number of its personnel conducting counter-IED training in Iraq, according to a defense ministry statement.
Those trainers combined with U.K. personnel already conducting anti-ISIL airstrikes and supporting intelligence and surveillance and aerial refueling missions would bring to about 1,000 the number of U.K. forces engaged in operations against ISIL.
“As a leader in the counter-ISIL Global Coalition the U.K. continues to make significant contributions to the efforts to tackle the threat from the terrorist organization,” the statement said. “By focusing these efforts where the U.K. can have the most impact, we are delivering niche expertise, capabilities and equipment that has allowed Iraqi ground forces to liberate around 25 percent of ISIL-held territory since the coalition started operations last year.”