Blundering
Iraqi air force pilots gave vital supplies of food, water and ammunition
to Islamic State militants instead of their own beleaguered troops.
The
aid drops were meant to help Iraqi soldiers desperately fending off
jihadist fighters near Saqlawia in the western province of Anbar.
Hakim
Al-Zamili, an Iraqi MP who is a member of the security and defense
committee, said the mistake had effectively allowed ISIS to kill off its
besieged soldiers.
Because
most of the extremist group's weaponry was seized from Iraqi forces
during its lightning offensive in June, the extra ammunition would have
given its fighters a critical edge in the battle.
Al-Zamili told NBC News:
'Those soldiers were in deadly need of these supplies, but because of
the wrong plans of the commanders in the Iraqi army and lack of
experience of the pilots, we in a way or another helped ISIS fighters to
kill our soldiers.'
A
brigadier-general in Iraq's Defense Ministry, who declined to be named,
confirmed the incident, which happened on September 19.
The officer also put the error down to a lack of experience, saying the pilots are 'all young and new'.
An investigation is being carried out to determine the exact cause of the mistake.
The
error raises further questions about the effectiveness of Iraq's
fledgling air force at a time when the U.S.-led coalition will be
depending on its military to help push back the insurgency.
