Britain to arm Iraqi Kurds with heavy machine guns

Britain is to ship heavy machine guns to Kurdish forces fighting Islamic State jihadists in Iraq, Defense Secretary Michael Fallon announced Tuesday.

The arms shipment, worth £1.6 million ($2.6 million, two million euros), will arrive in Iraq on Wednesday.

"The Kurdish forces remain significantly less well equipped than ISIL (Islamic State) and we are responding to help them defend themselves, protect citizens and push back ISIL advances," he said in a written statement to parliament.