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| Islamic State drives toward besieged cities in Iraq, Syria; defenders call for airstrikes | Islamic State drives toward besieged cities in Iraq, Syria; defenders call for airstrikes |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BAGHDAD — Islamic State fighters pressed closer toward besieged cities in Syria and Iraq on Thursday as defenders on both fronts prepared for possible street-by-street battles and appealed for intensified U.S.-led airstrikes, reports and witnesses said. | BAGHDAD — Islamic State fighters pressed closer toward besieged cities in Syria and Iraq on Thursday as defenders on both fronts prepared for possible street-by-street battles and appealed for intensified U.S.-led airstrikes, reports and witnesses said. |
| The twin showdowns — in the Euphrates River city of Hit in Iraq and the strategic Syrian crossroads of Kobane near the Turkish border — suggest that the Islamic State still has enough firepower and command structure to make gains despite weeks of aerial attacks by Western and Arab warplanes. | The twin showdowns — in the Euphrates River city of Hit in Iraq and the strategic Syrian crossroads of Kobane near the Turkish border — suggest that the Islamic State still has enough firepower and command structure to make gains despite weeks of aerial attacks by Western and Arab warplanes. |
| The clashes also have exposed weaknesses in ground forces trying to blunt the Islamic State’s push. Such worries have been raised in Turkey, whose parliament was expected to give the green light for possible military intervention in neighboring Iraq and Syria. | The clashes also have exposed weaknesses in ground forces trying to blunt the Islamic State’s push. Such worries have been raised in Turkey, whose parliament was expected to give the green light for possible military intervention in neighboring Iraq and Syria. |
| The loss of Hit, an oil-pipeline hub about 115 miles by road northwest of Baghdad, would further consolidate the Islamic State’s hold across Sunni-dominated areas stretching from near Iraq’s capital to Mosul, the largest city in the north. The region was once a key battleground between insurgents and Sunni tribes recruited by the United States to fight on its side. | The loss of Hit, an oil-pipeline hub about 115 miles by road northwest of Baghdad, would further consolidate the Islamic State’s hold across Sunni-dominated areas stretching from near Iraq’s capital to Mosul, the largest city in the north. The region was once a key battleground between insurgents and Sunni tribes recruited by the United States to fight on its side. |
| Now, Washington and Iraqi partners are trying to forge a similar alliance to help battle the Sunni-led Islamic State, a radical al-Qaeda offshoot also known as ISIS or ISIL. | Now, Washington and Iraqi partners are trying to forge a similar alliance to help battle the Sunni-led Islamic State, a radical al-Qaeda offshoot also known as ISIS or ISIL. |
| Just before dawn Thursday, militants targeted the Hit police headquarters and a separate checkpoint with car bombs, local officials said. | Just before dawn Thursday, militants targeted the Hit police headquarters and a separate checkpoint with car bombs, local officials said. |
| The officials said coalition warplanes carried out airstrikes on the militants, forcing them to retreat. | The officials said coalition warplanes carried out airstrikes on the militants, forcing them to retreat. |
| A member of the local council in Hit, Mohannad Mizbar, said Thursday afternoon that Islamic State fighters continued to battle Iraqi troops on the outskirts of the city. | A member of the local council in Hit, Mohannad Mizbar, said Thursday afternoon that Islamic State fighters continued to battle Iraqi troops on the outskirts of the city. |
| A Hit resident contacted by telephone said later that Islamic State fighters raised their flag over the mayor’s office and that street-to-street battles were raging between the insurgents and Iraqi security forces. | |
| Also Thursday, Islamic State militants assaulted a large army base in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi, but the attack was eventually repelled by security forces, officials said. | Also Thursday, Islamic State militants assaulted a large army base in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi, but the attack was eventually repelled by security forces, officials said. |
| Ramadi is one of the last major areas of Anbar province, where Hit is also located, that is still under government control. A prominent pro-government tribal leader, Sheikh Ahmed Abu Risha, said Thursday that jihadists also attacked his Ramadi-area village in a bid to weaken the armed tribesmen who bolster government security around the city. | Ramadi is one of the last major areas of Anbar province, where Hit is also located, that is still under government control. A prominent pro-government tribal leader, Sheikh Ahmed Abu Risha, said Thursday that jihadists also attacked his Ramadi-area village in a bid to weaken the armed tribesmen who bolster government security around the city. |
| They attacked the village, also called Abu Risha, after midnight, he said, and his men were still fighting the militants on Thursday. | They attacked the village, also called Abu Risha, after midnight, he said, and his men were still fighting the militants on Thursday. |
| “The area is very strategic,” Abu Risha said. | “The area is very strategic,” Abu Risha said. |
| In Syria’s northern Kurdish region, the militants appeared to moving closer to the border town of Kobane, which has been under near-constant attack for more than two weeks. The battles have sent more than 160,000 people fleeing to neighboring Turkey or seeking haven in enclaves still outside the Islamic State’s reach. | In Syria’s northern Kurdish region, the militants appeared to moving closer to the border town of Kobane, which has been under near-constant attack for more than two weeks. The battles have sent more than 160,000 people fleeing to neighboring Turkey or seeking haven in enclaves still outside the Islamic State’s reach. |
| A senior Syrian Kurdish commander, Ismet Sheikh Hasan, said forces defending Kobane were digging in for possible urban combat if Islamic State fighters breach the last lines ringing the town, also known in Arabic as Ayn al-Arab. | A senior Syrian Kurdish commander, Ismet Sheikh Hasan, said forces defending Kobane were digging in for possible urban combat if Islamic State fighters breach the last lines ringing the town, also known in Arabic as Ayn al-Arab. |
| The fast-moving events are closely watched by Turkey, which has sent military reinforcements to the border but has so far stayed on the sidelines of the international coalition against the Islamic State. A decision by the Turkish parliament to take an active role in the fight could mark a significant shift in tactics. | The fast-moving events are closely watched by Turkey, which has sent military reinforcements to the border but has so far stayed on the sidelines of the international coalition against the Islamic State. A decision by the Turkish parliament to take an active role in the fight could mark a significant shift in tactics. |
| Turkey, a NATO member with a vast military, could consider sending troops across the border in Syria and Iraq and opening up its bases to other foreign forces. In the 1990s, Turkey’s Incirlik air base was a hub for U.S.-led air patrols protecting Iraqi Kurds from Saddam Hussein’s armed forces. | Turkey, a NATO member with a vast military, could consider sending troops across the border in Syria and Iraq and opening up its bases to other foreign forces. In the 1990s, Turkey’s Incirlik air base was a hub for U.S.-led air patrols protecting Iraqi Kurds from Saddam Hussein’s armed forces. |
| Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has called for a similar buffer zone inside Syria. He has also echoed calls by President Obama to use “moderate” Syrian rebels as a proxy fighting force against the Islamic State. Turkey has been a key backer of rebel groups seeking to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. | Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has called for a similar buffer zone inside Syria. He has also echoed calls by President Obama to use “moderate” Syrian rebels as a proxy fighting force against the Islamic State. Turkey has been a key backer of rebel groups seeking to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. |
| “In the struggle against terrorism, we are open and ready for every kind of cooperation. However, Turkey is not a country that will allow itself to be used for temporary solutions,” Erdogan said Wednesday. | “In the struggle against terrorism, we are open and ready for every kind of cooperation. However, Turkey is not a country that will allow itself to be used for temporary solutions,” Erdogan said Wednesday. |
| In Geneva, a U.N. report cited widespread atrocities and abuses carried out by the Islamic State, including mass executions and beheadings, selling captive women and girls as sex slaves and waging targeted attacks against religious minorities including Christians and Yazidis, an ancient sect whose historical land is near Mosul. | In Geneva, a U.N. report cited widespread atrocities and abuses carried out by the Islamic State, including mass executions and beheadings, selling captive women and girls as sex slaves and waging targeted attacks against religious minorities including Christians and Yazidis, an ancient sect whose historical land is near Mosul. |
| The report by the U.N. Human Rights Office and the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq could help lay the groundwork for eventual charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. | The report by the U.N. Human Rights Office and the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq could help lay the groundwork for eventual charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. |
| It added that 24,000 civilians were killed or injured in violence in Iraq during the first eight months of this year — numbers not seen since the height of internal sectarian battles and the insurgency against U.S. forces more than seven years ago. | It added that 24,000 civilians were killed or injured in violence in Iraq during the first eight months of this year — numbers not seen since the height of internal sectarian battles and the insurgency against U.S. forces more than seven years ago. |
| Murphy reported from Washington. | Murphy reported from Washington. |