human rights watch

onsdag 29 oktober 2014

En route for Syria: Kurdish Peshmerga forces arrive in Turkey



En route for Syria: Kurdish Peshmerga forces arrive in Turkey
Around 150 Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have arrived in Turkey.

The forces will travel through the country to Syria, where they aim to help defend the besieged town of Kobani.




A military convoy carrying weapons, including artillery, is also being driven to the border town.

For more than a month, Kobani has been under threat from insurgents from the self-proclaimed Islamic State, also known as ISIL. During this period, more than 800 people have been killed in the town.

So far, ISIL has defied US-led airstrikes, but it is hoped the extra resources will help Kurds already fighting in Kobani to repel the jihadists’ advance.

Almost 200,000 Syrian Kurds fled across the border to Turkey after militants threatened to massacre those defending Kobani, prompting a call to arms from Kurds across the region.

The Iraqi Kurdish region’s parliament responded and voted to deploy some Peshmerga to Syria.

Under pressure from the west, Turkey agreed to let them travel through its territory. However, the government is still refusing to allow Turkish Kurds from the separatist PKK group to cross the border to fight.

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