Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government cleared the way for Germany to supply Iraqis with weapons to fight Islamic State militants, dropping a post-World War II taboo on arms shipments to conflict areas.
Germany’s reversal of its postwar arms doctrine reflects the revulsion felt across Europe at the brutal advance by Islamist fighters in Iraq. It also shows governments’ determination to halt the violence perpetrated by Islamic State from spilling back into Europe’s heartland.
