Berlin (dpa) - Germany is to send more than 100 military personnel to Iraq to train Kurds fighting the Islamic State militant group, in a joint mission with Italy, the Netherlands and Scandinavian nations, a spokesman for Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday.

The Merkel cabinet is to sign off on the proposal next week and send it to Germany‘s parliament for authorization, said spokesman Steffen Seibert.

"This mission is all about training and coordinating," said Jens Flosdorff, a Defence Ministry spokesman.

Germany has already supplied weapons to the Kurdish peshmerga fighters.

Europe Online