Kurdish parliament to approve Peshmerga deployment in Kobane

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—The Kurdish parliament is to vote on Wednesday on sending Peshmerga forces and advisors to the besieged town of Kobane, officials told Rudaw.

“The force that goes to Kobane will be from the Peshmerga ministry and Kurdistan’s security forces,” said Peshmerga Minister Mustafa Sayid Qader.

An official source told Rudaw that Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani has asked parliament to approve the deployment of Peshmerga forces to Kobane on the Syria-Turkey border.

Qader said that it is ultimately up to the people and forces in Kobane to decide if they need the Peshmerga support.

The Kurdish Peshmerga are expected to reach Kobane in the coming days.

This move comes two days after Turkey agreed to let the Peshmerga through its territory to join the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) in their fight against the Islamic State (IS).

Rudaw has learned that President Barzani and Peshmerga Minister have discussed and reached an agreement with the Democratic Union Party (PYD) on sending Peshmerga support units to Kobane.

Kurdistan Region’s Interior Minister Karim Sinjari and Peshmerga Minister Qader also met on Tuesday on the mechanism of sending the Peshmerga unit.

US officials and Turkey are also in the loop about the planned Peshmerga move, Rudaw was told.

This story has been updated at 16:03 22/10/14 to correct a quote incorrectly implying Peshmerga forces would be training Syrian Kurdish soldiers on the use of heavy weapons.