Australia to Send More Troops to Iraq

Another 300 Australian soldiers will be deployed to Iraq to help in the battle against Islamic State militants, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Tuesday. The Federal Cabinet approved a plan to send more soldiers as part of a joint training mission with New Zealand. About 200 Australian special forces are currently in Iraq to train Iraqi forces while last week New Zealand Prime Minister John Key announced 140 troops would be sent to Iraq. The goal is to assist in training forces to take back ISIS-held cities such as Mosul. Iraqi forces launched a large-scale offensive on Monday to seize control of Tikrit, the hometown Saddam Hussein located north of Baghdad.