US to give Iraq anti-tank weapons for IS fight

Friday, May 22, 2015 | 16:31:44

(VOVworld) – The US Department of Defense said Thursday that it will ship to Iraq thousands of anti-tank weapons to help Iraq’s forces fight the Islamic State.

US to give Iraq anti-tank weapons for IS fight - ảnh 1

A US Army trainer instructs an Iraqi Army recruit at a military base on April 12, 2015 in Taji, Iraq. (Photo: John Moore/Getty Images)

Colonel Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, said 2,000 anti-tank guns known as AT4 lightweight shoulder-fired rockets will arrive in Iraq next week.

Warren said the amount is double what the US previously agreed to send.

Warren said the weapons will help Iraqi forces counter the new IS tactic of using massive car bombs, which the terrorist group used in its final push in Ramadi last weekend.

Also on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said the IS executed at least 17 people, including civilians, after the jihadists seized Syria's ancient city of Palmyra.

Among the dead were several fighters loyal to the Syrian government, members of the National Defense Forces, and a pro-government militia.

At least four of them were beheaded.