British soldiers are in Iraq and working close to the frontline of the fight between ISIL and Kurdish fighters, the Ministry of Defense has said.

British soldiers are in Iraq and working close to the frontline of the fight between ISIL and Kurdish fighters, the Ministry of Defense has said.

A “small specialist team” is based near the Kurdish capital of Irbil in northern Iraq after their deployment was approved by the defense secretary, Michael Fallon, a spokeswoman confirmed.

They are in the war-torn region training peshmerga forces in the use of heavy machine guns that the UK supplied to them in September. The Sunday Times reported that the soldiers were from the 2nd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment, which is based in Cyprus.

The spokeswoman said: “The government has previously made clear its intention to provide training to the peshmerga as part of the continued effort to assist in the fight against ISIL.

“The defense secretary has approved the deployment of a small specialist team of non-combat army trainers, which is now in the Irbil area providing instruction on operating, employing and maintaining the heavy machine guns that were gifted by the UK last month.”