Islamic State Forces Continue Fighting Near Syria-Turkish Border
Written by : Mohamed Abdel Fattah
Oct 04, 2014
Islamic State forces shelled the Syrian border town of Kobani on Saturday and its Kurdish defenders said they were expecting a new assault to try to capture it.
Kurdish forces backed by U.S.-led airstrikes are trying to defend the town of Kobani from the militant advance. Kurds have been struggling to repel IS militants for weeks.
The main Kurdish armed group in Syria called on its kinsmen across the region to help it stop a massacre in the Syrian town of Kobani as Islamic State militants armed with tanks edged closer on its outskirts and pummel it with artillery fire.
Islamic State said they would take the town within days, Is launched an offensive to capture Kobane On September 15 and have advanced steadily despite U.S.-led air strikes.
Kurds have expressed anger and disappointment over Ankara's policy against ISIS, accusing the government of turning a blind eye to the group and refusing to allow Turkish Kurds to cross the border and fight in Syria.
IS fighters launched a major offensive against Kobani on Sept. 16, sparking an exodus of more than 160,000 mainly Kurdish refugees into Turkey.
Some 90 percent of residents of Kobani and nearby villages have fled for fear of an imminent assault by ISIS, Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday.
Syria warned Turkey on Friday against any military intervention on its territories, saying it would consider it an act of “aggression,” a day after the Turkish military was given authorization to conduct cross-border incursions against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) operating in the Arab country.
The warning came after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu vowed late Thursday that Ankara would do whatever it could to prevent the predominantly Kurdish town of Kobani, near its border with Syria, falling to ISIS militants.
The White House welcomed the Turkish parliament's vote Thursday authorizing Turkish military activity against Islamic State in both Syria and Iraq.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest also praised contributions by Australia, Denmark and the Netherlands to contribute fighter aircraft.
Meanwhile unconfirmed reports say at least 35 militants were killed in US-led air strikes over northern Syria.
On Friday US Vice-President Joe Biden criticised Turkey and US allies in the Arab world for supporting Sunni militant groups such as Islamic State, prompting a sharp response from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and his government continues fighting a civil war against rebel groups ranging from the Western-backed Free Syrian Army to Islamist militants including IS.More than 190,000 people have been killed in more than three years of conflict.
Sources
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/04/us-mideast-crisis-idUSKCN0HS0Y520141004
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29490256
http://www.voanews.com/content/fighting-continues-in-syria-near-turkish-border/2472408.html
Oct 04, 2014
Islamic State forces shelled the Syrian border town of Kobani on Saturday and its Kurdish defenders said they were expecting a new assault to try to capture it.
Kurdish forces backed by U.S.-led airstrikes are trying to defend the town of Kobani from the militant advance. Kurds have been struggling to repel IS militants for weeks.
The main Kurdish armed group in Syria called on its kinsmen across the region to help it stop a massacre in the Syrian town of Kobani as Islamic State militants armed with tanks edged closer on its outskirts and pummel it with artillery fire.
Islamic State said they would take the town within days, Is launched an offensive to capture Kobane On September 15 and have advanced steadily despite U.S.-led air strikes.
Kurds have expressed anger and disappointment over Ankara's policy against ISIS, accusing the government of turning a blind eye to the group and refusing to allow Turkish Kurds to cross the border and fight in Syria.
IS fighters launched a major offensive against Kobani on Sept. 16, sparking an exodus of more than 160,000 mainly Kurdish refugees into Turkey.
Some 90 percent of residents of Kobani and nearby villages have fled for fear of an imminent assault by ISIS, Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday.
Syria warned Turkey on Friday against any military intervention on its territories, saying it would consider it an act of “aggression,” a day after the Turkish military was given authorization to conduct cross-border incursions against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) operating in the Arab country.
The warning came after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu vowed late Thursday that Ankara would do whatever it could to prevent the predominantly Kurdish town of Kobani, near its border with Syria, falling to ISIS militants.
The White House welcomed the Turkish parliament's vote Thursday authorizing Turkish military activity against Islamic State in both Syria and Iraq.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest also praised contributions by Australia, Denmark and the Netherlands to contribute fighter aircraft.
Meanwhile unconfirmed reports say at least 35 militants were killed in US-led air strikes over northern Syria.
On Friday US Vice-President Joe Biden criticised Turkey and US allies in the Arab world for supporting Sunni militant groups such as Islamic State, prompting a sharp response from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and his government continues fighting a civil war against rebel groups ranging from the Western-backed Free Syrian Army to Islamist militants including IS.More than 190,000 people have been killed in more than three years of conflict.
Sources
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/04/us-mideast-crisis-idUSKCN0HS0Y520141004
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29490256
http://www.voanews.com/content/fighting-continues-in-syria-near-turkish-border/2472408.html
Comments
Post a Comment