Special to WorldTribune.com

BAGHDAD — Iran and Turkey quietly came to the aid of Kurdistan in the war against Islamic State of Iraq and Levant.

Kurdistan Regional Government President Masoud Barzani said neighboring states have sent weapons to help block the ISIL advance in September 2014. Barzani identified two of the suppliers as Iran and Turkey.

“This was a great help for that moment,” Barzani said.

In an interview with Sky News Arabic, Barzani said Iran sent two air transports laden with weapons on the first night of the ISIL offensive against Kurdistan. He did not identify the Iranian equipment.

Later, Barzani said, Turkey began to send weapons to KRG forces. The president said he was asked by the Turkish leadership not to announce Ankara’s assistance.

“Turkey sent [arms] later but asked us not to announce it due to domestic conjuncture,” Barzani said.

[On Oct. 14, Turkish warplanes struck suspected targets of the Kurdish Workers Party in the southeast. The mission by the U.S.-origin F-16 fighter-jets marked the first attack on PKK since a ceasefire in 2013.]

Barzani said Turkey was also treating Kurdish fighters in Syria during the current ISIL onslaught of the Kobane region. The president said more than 420 fighters, including senior officers, from the Democratic Union Party were recovering in Turkish hospitals and medical facilities.

Iran has reported military assistance to both KRG and Baghdad. On Oct. 12, Iranian Deputy Defense Minister Reza Talabi said the Baghdad government has approved Iranian operations to protect Shi’ite sites from ISIL attack.

“Iranian forces monitor terrorist movements in the region,” Talabi said in a television interview.

  Iran, Kobane, KRG, Masoud Barzani, PKK, Turkey secretly sent emergency weapons to Kurds against ISIL