Islamic State ‘retreating’ in key Syria town of Kobane as airstrikes continue

Islamic State (IS) militants are retreating in parts of the strategic Syrian town of Kobane, a Kurdish official has said. Idriss Nassan told the BBC IS had lost control of more than 20 per cent of the town in recent days. US defence officials say hundreds of militants have been killed around Kobane as US-led air strikes intensify. The news came as US President Barack Obama and the leaders of the UK, France, Germany and Italy agreed to step up support for an “inclusive political approach” in Iraq and training for local forces in Iraq and Syria, a statement by UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s office said.

ISIL has made no secret of the fact that they want that town… and so they have continued to flow fighters to Kobane.

US defence department spokesman John Kirby

Meanwhile, US-led forces carried out 18 air strikes on IS targets near the town on Tuesday and Wednesday, US Central Command said in a statement. Combat positions were destroyed and 16 buildings hit in the strikes. Kurdish fighters have been under siege in Kobane, near the Turkish border, for almost a month. The coalition has stepped up strikes in the region in recent days, in an effort to prevent IS from capturing the strategically important town. The battle for Kobane is regarded as a major test of whether the coalition’s air campaign can push back IS in Syria. More than 160,000 people have fled the predominantly Kurdish town in the face of the IS advance.

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