British SAS soldiers have been deployed to northern Iraq to gather intelligence ahead of any potential rescue operation, led by the US, to airlift thousands of Yazidi refugees from Mount Sinjar. In the most dramatic sign of Britains growing involvement in the Iraqi crisis, the SAS soldiers have moved to the region near Mount Sinjar where US special forces are coordinating the rescue effort. Last night, a small team from the US landed on Mount Sinjar to assess the situation, and said that an evacuation mission was less likely as there are far fewer Yazidis on Mount Sinjar than previously feared, according to Pentagon press secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby. The deployment of British special forces emerged as Britain announced that it will fly Soviet-era ammunition from eastern European countries to Kurdish forces fighting jihadists from the Islamic State (Isis) in northern Iraq. The Elysée Palace went a step further as it indicated France may be prepared to arm the Kurds itself. As the EU and the US distanced themselves from the Iraqi prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, by endorsing his proposed successor Haider al-Abadi, the EUs foreign policy chief Lady Ashton announced that an emergency meeting of foreign ministers would be held in Brussels on Friday to coordinate the EUs response. The foreign ministers are expected to give the green light to arming Kurdish refugees, though it is a matter for individual member states who will technically have to receive a request from Baghdad to comply with the EU arms embargo.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 03:47:13 +0000