ISIL Enters Syria’s Kobane; Civilians Ordered to Flee

Heavy street fighting spark as ISIL fighters penetrated the Syrian town Kobane for the first time.

With the sparking street-to-street fighting, Kurdish defenders issues an order for all civilians to flee.

Reports from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said two black ISIL flags were seen flying on Kobane’s eastern side on Monday, while there were reports of ISIL fighters entering the town from the east.

Rami Abdelrahman, the observatory’s head, said that urban guerrilla warfare has started and the fighting is taking place for the first time in districts at the eastern entrance, in Maqtala al-Jadida and Qani Arab.

Reports added that a spokesman for Kurdish forces said that all civilians had been told to leave immediately, declaring Kobane a military area.

Al Jazeera said the clashes in Qani Arab are the “heaviest since the start of the offensive as ISIL tries to bring in more fighters to take control of the city”. Kurdish activists revealed that a unit of ISIL fighters were eliminated by the town’s defenders, drawn from the Kurdish irregular force known as the YPG, as they attempted to enter from the east.

The ISIL advanced after they seized part of Mishtenur Hill late on Saturday, although US-led air attacks tried to slow the fighters’ advances.

According to UK-based observatory, at least 20 fighters were killed on Sunday during an attempt to enter the eastern neighborhood, ambushed by Kurdish YPG fighters.

Source: Al Jazeera