Barzani: Iran begins supplying Kurds with arms to fight Islamists

Mustapha Barzani, president of the Iraqi Kurdish republic, disclosed Tuesday that Iran had begun sending weapons for the Peshmergo to fight Islamist encroachments. Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif stood beside Barzani in Irbil when he made the announcement, which also praised Tehran as the first government to come forward with arms aid for the KRG. DEBKAfile: Until now, the US and Israel were the Kurds’ primary arms suppliers and military backers.