ISIS Militants Enter Kobani, the Strategic Town on Syria’s Border with Turkey
Fighters from the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, have pushed into Kobani, after subjecting the border town to an assault lasting nearly three weeks. Backed by tanks and artillery, they have now entered the strategically important town on Syria’s border with Turkey.
Inside Kobani, heavy street battles raged between ISIS fighters and Kurdish defenders of the city, with Turkish forces massed on the other side of the border
The reports come a few hours after ISIS raised its flag on a hill overlooking Kobani. and a building in the town, amid pleas from a Kurdish commander for help, as many fear for a massacre of Kurdish civilians.
“We are calling out to all international powers, forces from Kurdistan and the Kurdish public that ISIS thugs must be stopped and thousands of civilians must be saved from massacre,”. the Kurdish commander told the Guardian.
Recent videos have shown ISIS militants posting pictures of themselves holding the severed heads of female Kurdish fighters.
According to a New York Times report, as many as 9000 ISIS fighters were closing in on the area, and around 12,000 civilians are trapped in the city, prompting Kurdish fighters to order all civilians to evacuate.
Kobani has been under heavy attack since mid-September, with ISIS rapidly capturing dozens of villages, prompting around 160,000 Syrians to flee. Capturing Kobani would give “ISIS access to its positions in the Syrian province of Aleppo and stronghold of Raqqa to the east”, allowing it to consolidate its sweep across northern Iraq and Syria.
According to the New York Times, U.S. Led airstrikes against ISIS took out two of their positions south of Kobani, but Kurdish fighters have pleaded for more support as the remaining airstrikes concentrated on Raqqa and Deir al-Zour, and had not managed to stop the advancement on Kobani.
“We are happy about the U.S. airstrikes, but really, this is not enough. We need more airstrikes to be effective against [ISIS] weapons, “ the co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) told Reuters.
He went on to say that ISIS had brought large parts of its arsenal from its de facto capital in Raqqa, according to a Reuters report. This gave them a significant advantage over the Kurds, who do not have equally sophisticated arms to defend themselves.
Turkey so far has not responded to the ISIS advance on Kobani. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed to retaliate if ISIS were to attack Turkish forces, and on Monday at least 14 Turkish tanks deployed on a hilltop on Turkish soil near Kobani, while a shell from the fighting struck a house and grocery store inside Turkey, AFP reports.
The Secretary-General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, has said that NATO would protect Turkey if it comes under attack as a result of the fighting in Syria.
U.S. Plays Dominant Role in ISIS Strikes, Spends $1.1 Billion So Far
According to data released by the U.S. Central Command, the Pentagon has spent as much as $1.1 billion on U.S. military strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, including more than $62 million alone in Navy airstrikes and Tomahawk cruise missiles. The Navy has dropped about 185 munitions, including 47 cruise missiles launched from ships the region, while Air Force fighter jets far exceeded those numbers, launching close to 1,000 munitions.
According to the report, Arab and other allied countries carried out about 10 percent of the 2,000 air raids against ISIS, reflecting a dominant role played by the U.S. military in the airstrikes.
U.S. warplanes have thus far conducted 1,768 airstrikes since August, while other coalition aircraft carried out about 195 air raids.
Syrian Troops Seize Strategic Rebel Stronghold Outside of Damascus
On Monday Syrian government forces took control of Dakhaniyah, a strategic area outside Damascus that had been used by rebels to fire mortal shells into the capital, according to state media reports cited by AFP. The gains follow a month-long offensive by the government to recapture the area.
The capture would allow the government “to tighten the noose” on rebel fighters in Ain Tarma and Jobar, two areas in the eastern Ghouta area that have been opposition strongholds in the Damascus province.
“The capture follows a string of victories for regime forces in the area around Damascus, where they have retaken several rebel strongholds in recent months.”