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LazyLion
King of de Jungle
JIHADISTS CONTROL MORE THAN A THIRD OF SYRIA'S KOBANE: MONITOR
Islamic State group jihadists were in control Thursday of more than one-third of the Syrian border town of Kobane after pushing back its Kurdish defenders, a monitoring group said.
"Despite fierce resistance from the Kurdish forces, IS advanced during the night and controls more than a third of Kobane," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.
He said a Kurdish militia leader and several of his men were killed when jihadists captured a building they were using as a base in the northeast of the town.
The advance of IS fighters came despite intensified US-led air strikes aimed at preventing Kobane from falling into the hands of the jihadists.
The town, also known as Ain al-Arab, would be a major prize for the IS group, giving it unbroken control of a long stretch of Syria's border with Turkey.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 10:41
Islamic State group jihadists were in control Thursday of more than one-third of the Syrian border town of Kobane after pushing back its Kurdish defenders, a monitoring group said.
"Despite fierce resistance from the Kurdish forces, IS advanced during the night and controls more than a third of Kobane," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.
He said a Kurdish militia leader and several of his men were killed when jihadists captured a building they were using as a base in the northeast of the town.
The advance of IS fighters came despite intensified US-led air strikes aimed at preventing Kobane from falling into the hands of the jihadists.
The town, also known as Ain al-Arab, would be a major prize for the IS group, giving it unbroken control of a long stretch of Syria's border with Turkey.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 10:41
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
TURKEY SAYS CAN'T LEAD SYRIA GROUND OPERATION ALONE
Turkey on Thursday said it cannot be expected to lead a ground operation against jihadists in Syria alone, amid growing pressure on Ankara from the West to intervene militarily.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a news conference with visiting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 10:51
Turkey on Thursday said it cannot be expected to lead a ground operation against jihadists in Syria alone, amid growing pressure on Ankara from the West to intervene militarily.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a news conference with visiting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 10:51
Pitbull
Verboten
And I agree fully.
The Alliance nations should also be sending troops. Bombing them and expecting someone else to take the force on the ground is not cool.
I disagree. Its time those states that complain about ISIS get off their asses and be more proactive in taking control of their futures. They bitch and whine when America did not get involved in Syria, and then bitch and whine when America gets involved with ISIS. At the end of the day, the people in that part of the world need to get off their asses and fight for their country and their futures. They cant expect people they bitch about to bail them out every time there is a problem.
ISIS are NOT going to stop when they have Syria and Iraq, they will go into Turkey as Turkey is a very moderate Islamic country and stands against a lot of what ISIL stand for. Unless the Turks get off their asses and get more proactive in maintaining the safety of the area, they will eventually fall like other countries are. Turkey is a NATO member, its time they stood up and started being more responsible.
America pumped trillions into Iraq in the last war. Many Americans lost their lives. What happened at the end? When they pull out the bad people come back. So if they are going to win this fight its going to need locals who have a vested interest in the area to take more responsibility.
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Pitbull
Verboten
I agree with you 100%.
The problem is America left this void which is now being filled by ISIS. Now they try and scrum away from their commitment. The Brits and the Americans need soldiers on the ground. Turkey should also be fighting along side them as well as all the countries affected or targeted. It's just not good from America to now throw bombs and say we're doing enough.
In Iraq they definitely had an impact, but ISIS started in Syria, not Iraq. They created their power base in Syria. Of which America has had a very limited role.
They are not responsible for Syria. But did impact Iraq. They left Iraq with tons of loot and weapons... but the Iraqis ran away at the first sign of conflict and now those weapons belong to ISIS. Theyre also not shying away from their commitment. They are bombing the **** outta ISIS but it is not enough.
Now what do they do? Repeat their previous failed strategy or get the locals in the area to get off their asses and become more proactive in defending their own homes?
It shouldnt just be Turkey. All those countries with vested interest in the area should be involved. However, they want the Americans to come in and save them, but they are too cowardly to show active support for America as this might hurt them politically at home. Basically they want their toast buttered on both sides. American support, but they wanna look like American haters to their voting public.
In my opinion, things have to change. Trying Gulf War V3 is not going to work.
Pitbull
Verboten
Given I agree with everything you said, I can't disagree no more. You are correct.
Yeah, at the end of the day the people in the area need to take control of their futures. The Iraqi rent-an-army didnt work. People tend to fight harder when they are fighting for their homes rather than a paycheck. Time for that part of the area to catch a wake up
I would agree with you a bit. Limited "boot on the ground" (special forces) could help. Specifically in Kurdish held areas.
OrbitalDawn
Ulysses Everett McGill
Didn't the Arab League basically offer to pay for the West to intervene in Syria?
And ..|.. to you Turkey, the Kurds have been fighting all the time.
And ..|.. to you Turkey, the Kurds have been fighting all the time.
falcon786
Honorary Master
Cant believe I'm saying this but for once I agree with Ghoti....Turkey is definitely in danger in the long run if ISIS takes over....ISIS doesn't like moderate Islamic countries/people and actually have a stupid "you are either with us or against us" hardcore attitude and would gladly poison the population to rebel and attack when they can.
ISIS doesn't care if you are Muslim or not they only care if you are ISIS or not.Turkey is definitely in danger and the government needs to stand up to defend their country from being run over.
While at the same time telling everyone how evil the west is. I think we can thank China and Russia for killing that process.
Yeah the Kurds have, despite the government of Turkey, not because of.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Isn't Turkey a NATO country though? They are obligated to help them!
Fulcrum29
Honorary Master
Yah well, that will stop Turkey rolling in cheap oil barrels... Since ISIS started with their campaign, Turkey had very much turned a blind eye to ISIS.
I dont think NATO works that way. I think NATO is about defending other countries in NATO.
OrbitalDawn
Ulysses Everett McGill
Yep.
ghoti said:
The Kurds have been fighting for their lives. I'm just responding to the idea that Turkey doesn't want to fight on the ground 'alone'.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
IS ADVANCES IN KOBANE AS TURKEY REJECTS SOLO GROUND ACTION
by Fulya Ozerkan with Rita Daou in Beirut
Advancing Islamic State fighters seized control of a third of the Syrian border town of Kobane Thursday, as Turkey rejected sending in troops on its own against the jihadists.
Despite intensified US-led air strikes, IS militants captured more ground in overnight fighting that left dozens dead, as calls grew for ground action to support Kobane's beleaguered Kurdish defenders.
But after talks with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara could not be expected to act alone.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," he said.
Ankara has come under pressure over its inaction as the jihadists advance on its doorstep, with protests in Kurdish areas in Turkey sparking clashes that claimed at least 22 lives and forced authorities to declare a curfew in six provinces.
Kobane, where Kurdish militia have been holding out against a three-week siege by the jihadists, has become a crucial battleground in the fight against IS.
With tens of thousands of refugees, local residents and the global media gathered just across the border in Turkey, its conquest would be a highly visible symbolic victory for the extremists.
The US-led coalition carried out at least four fresh strikes early Thursday, an AFP reporter across the border in Turkey said, as it continued a flurry of bombing raids on IS positions in and around the town.
At least 20 coalition bombing raids have hit near Kobane since Tuesday.
"Air strikes are not helpful alone. We need heavy weaponry and tanks to support a ground operation," 37-year-old Azad, a refugee from Kobane, told AFP on the border.
"If weapons are sent, civilians would also join Kurdish fighters to defend the town," he added.
Street battles have been raging in Kobane since the jihadists breached its defences earlier this week.
IS fighters pulled out of some areas on Wednesday but have since renewed their offensive and seized more ground, a monitoring group said.
"Despite fierce resistance from the Kurdish forces, IS advanced during the night and controls more than a third of Kobane," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.
The Observatory said IS fighters were also closing on an area with several official buildings and the command of the Kurdish forces.
It said at least 42 IS jihadists were killed in the battle on Wednesday, including 23 in coalition air strikes, as well as 15 Kurdish fighters.
Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab, would be a major prize for the jihadists, giving them unbroken control of a long stretch of Syria's border with Turkey.
The extremist group has seized large parts of Iraq and Syria, declaring an Islamic "caliphate" and committing widespread atrocities.
Washington launched its air campaign against IS in Iraq in August and last month expanded it to Syria with the participation of five Arab allies.
After meeting defence chiefs on Wednesday, US President Barack Obama admitted the fight against IS would not be easy or short.
"This is not something that is going to be solved overnight," he said.
US-led aircraft were hitting the IS group at every opportunity but without a force on the ground to work with, there were limits to what could be accomplished by bombing from the air, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters.
"Air strikes alone are not going to do this," Kirby said. "We don't have a willing, capable, effective partner on the ground inside Syria right now. It's just a fact."
Obama has dispatched retired US general John Allen, and the US pointman on Iraq, Brett McGurk, to Ankara to squeeze commitments from Turkey on what role it can play in the coalition.
The Turkish response has been complicated by concerns over emboldening Kurdish separatists who have waged a deadly insurgency for the past three decades.
Pro-Kurdish protesters angered by the Turkish government's lack of action have clashed with police for three nights running, defying a curfew imposed by the army.
Hundreds of protesters took the streets again late Wednesday in cities of Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast and were dispersed using water cannon and tear gas, television said.
Protests and sporadic clashes have also erupted in Europe. More than 1,000 Kurds returned to the streets of Germany overnight, after unrest in the northern port city of Hamburg left 23 people wounded on Tuesday.
More than 180,000 people have been killed in Syria since an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's regime began in 2011 and evolved into a multi-front civil war that has drawn thousands of jihadists from overseas.
A priest kidnapped by Al-Qaeda-linked rebels in northwestern Syria was released on Thursday, the Franciscan Order said, days after his abduction alongside 20 other Christians.
The order said Father Hanna Jallouf, who was abducted on Sunday in the village of Qunyeh near the Turkish border, remained under "house arrest" but provided no further details. The fate of the others abducted was not clear.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 14:04
by Fulya Ozerkan with Rita Daou in Beirut
Advancing Islamic State fighters seized control of a third of the Syrian border town of Kobane Thursday, as Turkey rejected sending in troops on its own against the jihadists.
Despite intensified US-led air strikes, IS militants captured more ground in overnight fighting that left dozens dead, as calls grew for ground action to support Kobane's beleaguered Kurdish defenders.
But after talks with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara could not be expected to act alone.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," he said.
Ankara has come under pressure over its inaction as the jihadists advance on its doorstep, with protests in Kurdish areas in Turkey sparking clashes that claimed at least 22 lives and forced authorities to declare a curfew in six provinces.
Kobane, where Kurdish militia have been holding out against a three-week siege by the jihadists, has become a crucial battleground in the fight against IS.
With tens of thousands of refugees, local residents and the global media gathered just across the border in Turkey, its conquest would be a highly visible symbolic victory for the extremists.
The US-led coalition carried out at least four fresh strikes early Thursday, an AFP reporter across the border in Turkey said, as it continued a flurry of bombing raids on IS positions in and around the town.
At least 20 coalition bombing raids have hit near Kobane since Tuesday.
"Air strikes are not helpful alone. We need heavy weaponry and tanks to support a ground operation," 37-year-old Azad, a refugee from Kobane, told AFP on the border.
"If weapons are sent, civilians would also join Kurdish fighters to defend the town," he added.
Street battles have been raging in Kobane since the jihadists breached its defences earlier this week.
IS fighters pulled out of some areas on Wednesday but have since renewed their offensive and seized more ground, a monitoring group said.
"Despite fierce resistance from the Kurdish forces, IS advanced during the night and controls more than a third of Kobane," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.
The Observatory said IS fighters were also closing on an area with several official buildings and the command of the Kurdish forces.
It said at least 42 IS jihadists were killed in the battle on Wednesday, including 23 in coalition air strikes, as well as 15 Kurdish fighters.
Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab, would be a major prize for the jihadists, giving them unbroken control of a long stretch of Syria's border with Turkey.
The extremist group has seized large parts of Iraq and Syria, declaring an Islamic "caliphate" and committing widespread atrocities.
Washington launched its air campaign against IS in Iraq in August and last month expanded it to Syria with the participation of five Arab allies.
After meeting defence chiefs on Wednesday, US President Barack Obama admitted the fight against IS would not be easy or short.
"This is not something that is going to be solved overnight," he said.
US-led aircraft were hitting the IS group at every opportunity but without a force on the ground to work with, there were limits to what could be accomplished by bombing from the air, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters.
"Air strikes alone are not going to do this," Kirby said. "We don't have a willing, capable, effective partner on the ground inside Syria right now. It's just a fact."
Obama has dispatched retired US general John Allen, and the US pointman on Iraq, Brett McGurk, to Ankara to squeeze commitments from Turkey on what role it can play in the coalition.
The Turkish response has been complicated by concerns over emboldening Kurdish separatists who have waged a deadly insurgency for the past three decades.
Pro-Kurdish protesters angered by the Turkish government's lack of action have clashed with police for three nights running, defying a curfew imposed by the army.
Hundreds of protesters took the streets again late Wednesday in cities of Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast and were dispersed using water cannon and tear gas, television said.
Protests and sporadic clashes have also erupted in Europe. More than 1,000 Kurds returned to the streets of Germany overnight, after unrest in the northern port city of Hamburg left 23 people wounded on Tuesday.
More than 180,000 people have been killed in Syria since an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's regime began in 2011 and evolved into a multi-front civil war that has drawn thousands of jihadists from overseas.
A priest kidnapped by Al-Qaeda-linked rebels in northwestern Syria was released on Thursday, the Franciscan Order said, days after his abduction alongside 20 other Christians.
The order said Father Hanna Jallouf, who was abducted on Sunday in the village of Qunyeh near the Turkish border, remained under "house arrest" but provided no further details. The fate of the others abducted was not clear.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 09 Oct 2014 14:04
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
KURDS HOLD OFF IS IN SYRIA TOWN, PRESSURE MOUNTS ON TURKEY
by Fulya Ozerkan with Sara Hussein in Beirut
Kurdish militia fought to hold off Islamic State group jihadists in the battleground Syrian border town of Kobane on Friday as pressure grew for action by neighbouring Turkey.
US-led warplanes have intensified air strikes against IS fighters who have been closing on the town for three weeks but the Pentagon has warned that, without a force on the ground to work with, there are limits to what can be done.
The coordinator of the US-led campaign, retired US general John Allen, was to hold a second day of talks in Ankara after the NATO ally insisted it could not be expected to take ground action alone against the jihadists on its doorstep.
Fierce clashes raged early Friday close to the command headquarters of the main Kurdish fighting force, the People's Protection Units (YPG), the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
IS fighters already captured the nearby offices of the Kurds' asayesh internal security force on Thursday, bringing the front line to just 1.3 kilometres (little more than three-quarters of a mile) from the Turkish border.
US-led warplanes also carried out fresh strikes during the night on IS targets southwest of Kobane, said the Britain-based Observatory, which has a wide network of sources inside Syria.
The number of daily air strikes around the town has jumped from a handful previously to 28 on Wednesday and at least 14 on Thursday, according to US Central Command, which runs the air war against the jihadists.
"We get them when we see them," said one military officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"Opportunities (for air strikes) are presenting themselves in Kobane right now," the officer told AFP.
But officials insisted there were no forward air controllers on the ground directing the strikes or a decision to ramp up the bombing runs.
There is "no change in strategy but ISIL (IS) has exposed their forces as they have pushed north to Kobane and provided solid targets," said another senior military official, who asked not to be named.
US commanders were mindful of the dire humanitarian situation for the Kurds in Kobane, where 300,000 civilians have fled the advancing jihadists, but Washington did not consider it a strategic location, the official said.
"We're not going to be drawn into a town-by-town strategy," the official said.
With the world media gathered just across the border in Turkey, the conquest of Kobane would be a highly visible symbolic victory for the extremists.
But for US commanders, the top priority remains defeating the IS group first in neighbouring Iraq, where there are more capable local forces to work with, the official said.
In Syria, the objective is to disrupt the IS group's supply lines and sanctuaries, as there is no viable, moderate rebel force fighting the jihadists on the ground, the official added.
Coordination in Kobane has been hampered by the close ties between the YPG fighters defending the town and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged a three-decade insurgency for self-rule in neighbouring southeastern Turkey.
Those ties have also complicated Turkey's response, with the government deeply reluctant to allow weapons or Kurdish fighters to cross the border.
Pro-Kurdish protesters angered by Turkey's lack of action have clashed repeatedly with police, sparking violence that has claimed at least 27 lives and prompted the Turkish authorities to impose a curfew in six provinces.
After talks with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara could not be expected to act alone.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," he said.
There has been disappointment in Washington and elsewhere that Ankara has yet to commit its well-equipped and well-trained forces to the fight against the militants.
US coordinator Allen was to hold a second day of talks with Turkish officials on Friday on what role Ankara might play in the US-led coalition.
A joint US-Turkish military team will also meet next week to discuss the fight against the Islamist militants.
"There is no question that Turkey is well positioned to contribute," in areas including military cooperation, US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, while stressing "it's not a situation where we are making demands".
Turkey has been calling for a buffer zone to protect its border and provide some protection for fleeing Kurds.
The Turkish foreign minister was to hold talks in Paris on Friday, a day after France threw its weight behind the call.
But Russia said Thursday that any such plan would need the UN Security Council's approval.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 10 Oct 2014 10:50
by Fulya Ozerkan with Sara Hussein in Beirut
Kurdish militia fought to hold off Islamic State group jihadists in the battleground Syrian border town of Kobane on Friday as pressure grew for action by neighbouring Turkey.
US-led warplanes have intensified air strikes against IS fighters who have been closing on the town for three weeks but the Pentagon has warned that, without a force on the ground to work with, there are limits to what can be done.
The coordinator of the US-led campaign, retired US general John Allen, was to hold a second day of talks in Ankara after the NATO ally insisted it could not be expected to take ground action alone against the jihadists on its doorstep.
Fierce clashes raged early Friday close to the command headquarters of the main Kurdish fighting force, the People's Protection Units (YPG), the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
IS fighters already captured the nearby offices of the Kurds' asayesh internal security force on Thursday, bringing the front line to just 1.3 kilometres (little more than three-quarters of a mile) from the Turkish border.
US-led warplanes also carried out fresh strikes during the night on IS targets southwest of Kobane, said the Britain-based Observatory, which has a wide network of sources inside Syria.
The number of daily air strikes around the town has jumped from a handful previously to 28 on Wednesday and at least 14 on Thursday, according to US Central Command, which runs the air war against the jihadists.
"We get them when we see them," said one military officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"Opportunities (for air strikes) are presenting themselves in Kobane right now," the officer told AFP.
But officials insisted there were no forward air controllers on the ground directing the strikes or a decision to ramp up the bombing runs.
There is "no change in strategy but ISIL (IS) has exposed their forces as they have pushed north to Kobane and provided solid targets," said another senior military official, who asked not to be named.
US commanders were mindful of the dire humanitarian situation for the Kurds in Kobane, where 300,000 civilians have fled the advancing jihadists, but Washington did not consider it a strategic location, the official said.
"We're not going to be drawn into a town-by-town strategy," the official said.
With the world media gathered just across the border in Turkey, the conquest of Kobane would be a highly visible symbolic victory for the extremists.
But for US commanders, the top priority remains defeating the IS group first in neighbouring Iraq, where there are more capable local forces to work with, the official said.
In Syria, the objective is to disrupt the IS group's supply lines and sanctuaries, as there is no viable, moderate rebel force fighting the jihadists on the ground, the official added.
Coordination in Kobane has been hampered by the close ties between the YPG fighters defending the town and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged a three-decade insurgency for self-rule in neighbouring southeastern Turkey.
Those ties have also complicated Turkey's response, with the government deeply reluctant to allow weapons or Kurdish fighters to cross the border.
Pro-Kurdish protesters angered by Turkey's lack of action have clashed repeatedly with police, sparking violence that has claimed at least 27 lives and prompted the Turkish authorities to impose a curfew in six provinces.
After talks with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara could not be expected to act alone.
"It's not realistic to expect that Turkey will lead a ground operation on its own," he said.
There has been disappointment in Washington and elsewhere that Ankara has yet to commit its well-equipped and well-trained forces to the fight against the militants.
US coordinator Allen was to hold a second day of talks with Turkish officials on Friday on what role Ankara might play in the US-led coalition.
A joint US-Turkish military team will also meet next week to discuss the fight against the Islamist militants.
"There is no question that Turkey is well positioned to contribute," in areas including military cooperation, US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, while stressing "it's not a situation where we are making demands".
Turkey has been calling for a buffer zone to protect its border and provide some protection for fleeing Kurds.
The Turkish foreign minister was to hold talks in Paris on Friday, a day after France threw its weight behind the call.
But Russia said Thursday that any such plan would need the UN Security Council's approval.
Source : Sapa-AFP /kd
Date : 10 Oct 2014 10:50
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
ISLAMIC STATE GROUP SHELLS SYRIAN BORDER CROSSING
By LEFTERIS PITARAKIS and BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press
The Islamic State group shelled a Syrian border crossing with Turkey on Friday to try and capture it and cut off the embattled town of Kobani, a local Kurdish official and Syrian activists said.
The official, Idriss Nassan, said Islamic State fighters aim to seize the crossing in order to close the noose around the town's Kurdish defenders and prevent anyone from entering or leaving Kobani.
By mid-morning Friday, occasional gunfire and explosions that appeared to be rocket-propelled grenades and mortar shells could be heard from across the border in Turkey, and plumes of smoke were seen rising in the distance.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the militants shelled several areas in Kobani, including the border crossing, which is the town's only gateway to Turkey.
Islamic State group this week pushed into Kobani for the first time since launching its offensive in the area in mid-September. The onslaught has forced more than 200,000 to flee the country across the border into Turkey and activists say the fighting over Kobani has killed more than 500 people.
"Daesh is doing all it can to take the border crossing point through the farmlands east of the city," Nassan said, using an Arabic acronym to refer to the Islamic State group. "They think there might be help (for the Kurdish militia) coming through the crossing so they want to control the border."
Meanwhile, members of the main Kurdish militia known as the Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, withdrew from a hill on the western outskirts of the town for tactical reasons, Nassan added, without giving further details.
The Observatory said the U.S.-led coalition launched airstrikes east and south of Kobani overnight. Nassan said an airstrike south of the town targeted the Al-Furat gas station, which is apparently under the control of the Islamic State group.
The Observatory said that after the airstrikes on Kobani intensified over the past days, targeting the Islamic State group's artillery and vehicles, the militants are now mostly firing mortar rounds and are using motorcycles to bring ammunition to their fighters on the front lines.
----
Mroue reported from Beirut.
Source : Sapa-AP /ar
Date : 10 Oct 2014 11:34
By LEFTERIS PITARAKIS and BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press
The Islamic State group shelled a Syrian border crossing with Turkey on Friday to try and capture it and cut off the embattled town of Kobani, a local Kurdish official and Syrian activists said.
The official, Idriss Nassan, said Islamic State fighters aim to seize the crossing in order to close the noose around the town's Kurdish defenders and prevent anyone from entering or leaving Kobani.
By mid-morning Friday, occasional gunfire and explosions that appeared to be rocket-propelled grenades and mortar shells could be heard from across the border in Turkey, and plumes of smoke were seen rising in the distance.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the militants shelled several areas in Kobani, including the border crossing, which is the town's only gateway to Turkey.
Islamic State group this week pushed into Kobani for the first time since launching its offensive in the area in mid-September. The onslaught has forced more than 200,000 to flee the country across the border into Turkey and activists say the fighting over Kobani has killed more than 500 people.
"Daesh is doing all it can to take the border crossing point through the farmlands east of the city," Nassan said, using an Arabic acronym to refer to the Islamic State group. "They think there might be help (for the Kurdish militia) coming through the crossing so they want to control the border."
Meanwhile, members of the main Kurdish militia known as the Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, withdrew from a hill on the western outskirts of the town for tactical reasons, Nassan added, without giving further details.
The Observatory said the U.S.-led coalition launched airstrikes east and south of Kobani overnight. Nassan said an airstrike south of the town targeted the Al-Furat gas station, which is apparently under the control of the Islamic State group.
The Observatory said that after the airstrikes on Kobani intensified over the past days, targeting the Islamic State group's artillery and vehicles, the militants are now mostly firing mortar rounds and are using motorcycles to bring ammunition to their fighters on the front lines.
----
Mroue reported from Beirut.
Source : Sapa-AP /ar
Date : 10 Oct 2014 11:34
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
TURKEY 'OPPOSES IS LIKE IT OPPOSES ASSAD': PM
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Friday insisted that Turkey was opposed to Islamic State (IS) militants, who have seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, in the same way as it opposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Ankara has vehemently opposed Assad during the three-and-a-half-year Syria conflict but has been criticised for not showing greater involvement in the fight against IS extremists.
But Davutoglu said: "Turkey is against ISIS just the same way that it is against Assad."
"Assad and ISIS are both responsible for all these events and tragedies," he told reporters in Ankara using a variant of the name for IS.
He added: "No one can prove that Turkey is supporting ISIS."
Turkey has been reluctant to intervene militarily against IS jihadists trying to take the mainly Kurdish town of Kobane just across the border, despite having parliamentary authorisation for military action in Syria.
Ankara has been accused of encouraging the rise of IS with its support for Islamist-tinted rebel groups in Syria seeking to oust Assad and is now seeking a commitment from the West to move against the Syrian leader.
Davutoglu ridiculed Turkey's main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who suggested that parliament should issue a separate mandate for Turkish military action in Kobane.
"Are we going to issue a separate mandate for each province or district? It's such a ridiculous proposal," Davutoglu scoffed.
Source : Sapa-AFP /ar
Date : 10 Oct 2014 11:30
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Friday insisted that Turkey was opposed to Islamic State (IS) militants, who have seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, in the same way as it opposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Ankara has vehemently opposed Assad during the three-and-a-half-year Syria conflict but has been criticised for not showing greater involvement in the fight against IS extremists.
But Davutoglu said: "Turkey is against ISIS just the same way that it is against Assad."
"Assad and ISIS are both responsible for all these events and tragedies," he told reporters in Ankara using a variant of the name for IS.
He added: "No one can prove that Turkey is supporting ISIS."
Turkey has been reluctant to intervene militarily against IS jihadists trying to take the mainly Kurdish town of Kobane just across the border, despite having parliamentary authorisation for military action in Syria.
Ankara has been accused of encouraging the rise of IS with its support for Islamist-tinted rebel groups in Syria seeking to oust Assad and is now seeking a commitment from the West to move against the Syrian leader.
Davutoglu ridiculed Turkey's main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who suggested that parliament should issue a separate mandate for Turkish military action in Kobane.
"Are we going to issue a separate mandate for each province or district? It's such a ridiculous proposal," Davutoglu scoffed.
Source : Sapa-AFP /ar
Date : 10 Oct 2014 11:30