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Airstrikes target Islamic State positions near embattled Kobane | Airstrikes target Islamic State positions near embattled Kobane |
(about 4 hours later) | |
Turkey’s president conceded Tuesday that Islamic State fighters are close to winning control of a strategic Syrian border town and suggested airstrikes alone are not enough to stop further advances by the militants. | |
But Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared to emphasis possible coordination with Syrian militias and rebel forces rather than signaling Turkey was preparing to send its powerful military over the border to confront the Islamic State. | |
“There has to be cooperation with those who are fighting on the ground,’’ Erdogan said during a visit to a Turkish border camp for Syrian refugees. | |
NATO-member Turkey has become an increasingly important frontline partner in the international coalition against the Islamic State. | |
Last week, Turkish lawmakers gave approval to deploy troops in neighboring Syria and Iraq to battle the militants. Turkish tanks and troops have reinforced border posts, which are within sight of battles and airstrikes around the border town of Kobane as Syrian Kurdish fighters tried to hold off a fierce Islamic State offensive. | |
Turkey, however, has held back from sending its forces across the border despite earlier pledges to defend Kobane. Erdogan said it appears Kobane will soon fall to the Islamic State — which would give the militants control over key stretches of the Turkish-Syrian border. | |
He instead looked ahead to ways to blunt further Islamic State gains. Erdogan said airstrikes are not sufficient, and called for increased coordination with fighters in Syria — which include Syrian Kurdish militias and a variety of rebel factions that have battled against the government of President Bashar al-Assad since 2011. | |
Turkey is a staunch backer of the Syrian rebel groups, and has linked its cooperation in the Islamic State fight with expanded efforts to bring down Assad. The Obama administration also has proposed expanding aid to “moderate’’ Syrian rebels as proxy forces against the Islamic State. | |
So far, however, the main front has been held by Syrian Kurdish militiamen trying to defend besieged Kobane after weeks of fighting. Airstrikes believed part of the U.S.-led coalition targeted Islamic State positions on Tuesday. | |
The attacks didn’t appear to force any major pullbacks by the Islamic State, whose black flag was raised Monday near one of the gateways to Kobane. | |
Capturing Kobane would give the Islamic State control over a longer stretch of the Turkish-Syrian border and open potential new smuggling lines for fighters and supplies. | Capturing Kobane would give the Islamic State control over a longer stretch of the Turkish-Syrian border and open potential new smuggling lines for fighters and supplies. |
More than 160,000 refugees have fled to Turkey or nearby areas to escape the fighting around Kobane. They joined more than 1.5 million Syrians driven to Turkey by the civil war. | |
Separately, U.S. military forces used remotely piloted aircraft and helicopters to carry out three strikes in Iraq. | |
The deployment of U.S. attack helicopters to the battlefield in Iraq suggests that Iraqi troops need closer air support as they fight Islamic State militants, who have inched nearer to Baghdad in recent weeks. | The deployment of U.S. attack helicopters to the battlefield in Iraq suggests that Iraqi troops need closer air support as they fight Islamic State militants, who have inched nearer to Baghdad in recent weeks. |
The aircraft are known for their accuracy and can fire missiles from several miles away. They also can help hit mobile targets such as armed trucks or ground troops, said Chris Harmer, a retired Navy helicopter pilot who is now an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War. | The aircraft are known for their accuracy and can fire missiles from several miles away. They also can help hit mobile targets such as armed trucks or ground troops, said Chris Harmer, a retired Navy helicopter pilot who is now an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War. |
“The more lively the fight is, the more likely you are to need rotary-wing aircraft to assist forces on the ground,” Harmer said. | “The more lively the fight is, the more likely you are to need rotary-wing aircraft to assist forces on the ground,” Harmer said. |
But because helicopters fly at low altitudes, they are also more vulnerable to rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons. | But because helicopters fly at low altitudes, they are also more vulnerable to rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons. |
The Islamic State has demonstrated its ability to take down aircraft in both Iraq and Syria. Last week, members of the jihadist group shot down an Iraqi helicopter near the Baiji oil refinery in northern Iraq. The group also overran Iraqi army bases in the west, prompting intensified strikes from coalition warplanes over the weekend. | The Islamic State has demonstrated its ability to take down aircraft in both Iraq and Syria. Last week, members of the jihadist group shot down an Iraqi helicopter near the Baiji oil refinery in northern Iraq. The group also overran Iraqi army bases in the west, prompting intensified strikes from coalition warplanes over the weekend. |
Daniela Deane contributed to this report from Rome. | Daniela Deane contributed to this report from Rome. |