Sunday, October 19, 2014

Kurds and ISIS in Kobani

"Kobani Sees Fiercest Fighting in Days Between Kurds and ISIS"
By: Humeyra Pamuk
Source: Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/19/kobani-kurds-isis_n_6010504.html
The Syrian border has seen aggressive fighting for the past months but this past weekend, the town of Kobani experienced hard-hitting Islamic State fighters attacking Kurdish defenders with bombs and mortars. The battle for the town of Kobani has been ongoing for about a month. The Islamic State intends to take Kobani to strengthen its position in Syria. The United States coalition has been bombing Islamic State targets and Syria since September. The fate of the town of Kobani is viewed as an important test for the United States President Barack Obama’s campaign against the Islamists. Turkey is unwilling to interpose, insisting the allies should confront Assad. Countless people have spoken on the clashes, reporting nonstop car bombs and unexpected mortar shells. Seventy Islamic State fighters have been reportedly killed in the past two days. There are few remaining civilians in Kobani, fifteen of which are being looked after by one doctor. They are out of medicine, antibiotics, milk, and vital supplies. Ankara has refused to rearm Kurdish fighters even though they are at a sizeable disadvantage when facing the Islamic State and their weaponry. Much of their weaponry has been seized from the Iraq military. Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan told the Turkish media that “Ankara will never arm the YPG through its political wing, the PYD” (Pamuk, 1). He also stated that for them, “the PYD is the same as the PKK, it’s a terrorist organization” (Pamuk, 1). Kurds make up about twenty percent of the population in Turkey, and this has ignited rage among them.

            As a person who believes in what is fair and correct, it is important to stay informed on all that is happening with the Islamic State. For one to formulate an opinion, one must first inform oneself with the latest occurrences and where each group stands.

2 comments:

  1. This crisis that is going on in Kobani is truly unfair to the innocent people. These bombings not only kill people, but they also destroy the land and its beauty. Tamar I was captivated by your blog post due to the serious and informative tone you had. It keeps the audience awake and informs them of the situation. Congratulations on another awesome blog post!

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  2. The current condition in Kobani is ridiculous. Why do these people deserve such harsh treatment? Why do they deserve to be killed? If i could I would definitely send help to Kobani because it seems as though they are on their own. How could one doctor help save the lives of the majority of the civilians in the town? You caught my attention during the first few sentences and I had to finish reading to understand what was occurring there. The situation just keeps on getting worse and worse and there is hardly anything we can do. Great work!

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