Turkey Locks Down Border After Refugee Surge
The Washington Post reports that Turkey has locked down its border with Syria after a new refugee surge saw a staggering 100,000 people cross over into Turkey, fleeing the latest advance by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
“The move by Turkey reflects desperation on both sides of the border,” the paper says. “Turkey has been struggling with more than 1.5 million seeking haven from the Syrian civil war and officials fear another humanitarian crisis on its territory. In Syria’s Kurdish region, the push by the Islamic State has exposed weaknesses in the Kurdish defenses and could leave civilians nowhere to run if the border remains sealed.
“The official borders with Turkey are closed by the Turkish authorities,” the Post quotes Redur Xelil, the spokesperson of the People’s Protection Units – one of the Kurdish groups fighting the Islamic State – as saying. “However, the refugees are crossing through wire fences in some areas.”
Meanwhile, Reuters reports that Syrian Kurdish fighters halted an ISIS advance to the east of Kobani, a majority-Kurdish northern city near the Turkish border.
“Fierce clashes are still under way but the ISIS advance to the east of Kobani has been halted since last night,” Xelil told the wire via Skype. He added that this eastern front has been the scene of the most intense fighting in the new offensive launched on Kobani last Tuesday by ISIS.
Syria Blasts Coalition for ISIS Policy
AP reports that Jihad Laham, Syria’s parliament speaker, said this weekend that the U.S. should work with the Assad regime to fight ISIS, rather than ally with nations who he said “support terrorism” – likely in reference to Saudi Arabia and other countries backing anti-government rebels.
“Obama is currently working to form a global coalition to confront the Islamic State group, which controls large parts of Syria and Iraq,” the wire says. “The U.S. meanwhile has been conducting airstrikes against Islamic State fighters in Iraq since August. Obama last week authorized strikes against the group in Syria.
“U.S. officials have ruled out direct coordination with Assad’s government, a move which has infuriated Syrian officials who say any airstrikes without their consent would be a breach of the country’s sovereignty.”
Meanwhile, U.N. ambassador Samantha Power predicted Sunday that “We will not do the airstrikes alone.” Washington, Reuters reports, “is trying to build an international military, political and financial coalition to defeat the radical Sunni Muslim group that has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria and proclaimed a caliphate in the heart of the Middle East.”