ALT DUVENSTEDT: Germany's armed forces on Friday began sending aid supplies to northern Iraq where thousands of people have fled Islamic State militants, and the defence minister said Germany was looking into whether it would also deliver military equipment.

The first plane set off for Arbil, capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq, carrying medicines, food and blankets and further aid flights were planned for the day.

“Of course this is just the beginning and we're working hard on sending further aid if necessary and it's becoming apparent that is the case,” Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen told reporters at Hohn airbase in northern Germany.

“We are also working on the question of whether equipment is needed,” she added, such as protective helmets and vests.

Von der Leyen said Iraqi troops were trained on and wanted weapons from the former Soviet Union. “Germany does not have such weapon systems and could also not deliver them,” she said.

But in an interview with German's mass-selling daily Bild she said, “Generally, if a genocide can be prevented with German weapons, then we must help.”

Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Wednesday that Germany was prepared to bend its restrictive policies on weapons exports and arm Kurdish fighters battling Islamic State militants.

Islamic State insurgents - Sunni Islamist militants who have proclaimed a caliphate straddling parts of Iraq and Syria - have swept across northern Iraq in recent weeks, pushing back Kurdish forces and driving tens of thousands of minority Yazidis and Christians from their homes.

Britain would 'favourably consider' supplying Kurds with arms

Britain would “favourably consider” a request for arms from the Kurds to help them battle Sunni militants who have seized much of Iraq, the BBC reported on Friday, citing unidentified sources.

The United States has asked European countries to supply arms and ammunition to Kurdish forces, US and European officials have said.

Several European governments, including France, Germany, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands, have said they will send arms to the Kurds or are considering doing so.

The BBC quoted Downing Street sources as saying that the Kurds had not yet asked Britain for direct help but that any request would be considered with an open mind.

A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron could not be immediately reached for comment.

The fighters of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region are struggling against better-armed militants from the Islamic State group, which has swept across northern Iraq in recent weeks, pushing back Kurdish forces and driving tens of thousands of minority Yazidis and Christians from their homes.

Cameron has so far said Britain's response would be limited to a humanitarian effort to help the Yazidis.

European Union foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting on Friday to discuss the region's response to major crises including the conflict in Iraq, the EU said on Wednesday.

US, UN hail Maliki departure

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“We commend Prime Minister Maliki for his decision to support Prime Minister-designate Haidar al-Abadi in his efforts to form a new government in line with the Iraqi constitution,” National Security Advisor Susan Rice said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the UN's top envoy in Iraq praised Nuri al-Maliki's decision to back down from a damaging bid to cling to his position as prime minister, calling it a “historic milestone”.

“The decision of Mr. Maliki to allow the formation of a new government to proceed without further delay demonstrates statesmanship and a commitment to the democratic process and the constitution,” Nickolay Mladenov said in a statement.

“It will allow for another historic milestone -- the peaceful transition of authority in a country that has been through too much bloodshed and violence,” he said.