New Recruits Join ISIS in Aleppo
Reuters reports that more than 200 new recruits in Aleppo have joined the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) since earlier this month, when President Obama announced strikes on the militant group in Syria. ISIS has been exerting pressure on rival insurgent groups in the province.
“At least 162 people joined the radical al-Qaida offshoot in northeastern and eastern Aleppo in the week after Obama’s speech on Sept. 10, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which gathers information on the conflict,” the wire writes.
“An additional 73 men had joined the group on Sept. 23 and 24 in the northeastern Aleppo countryside since the start of the strikes, the Observatory said, bringing the total number since Sept. 10 to at least 235.”
Reuters also reports that French fighter planes struck ISIS targets in Iraq Thursday, as U.S. forces hit targets held by the group in Syria. A U.S.-led coalition to fight ISIS “gained momentum” as Britain announced it would join.
“The French strikes were a prompt answer to the beheading of a French tourist in Algeria by militants, who said the killing was punishment for Paris’ decision last week to become the first European country to join the U.S.-led bombing campaign.”
Meanwhile in southern Turkey, the wire says machine-gun fire and artillery “echoed across the border” as ISIS fighters pushed towards Kobani, battling Kurdish forces there. At least two shells crossed into Turkey.
ISIS “launched an offensive to try to capture the border town of Kobani more than a week ago, besieging it from three sides. More than 140,000 Kurds have fled the town and surrounding villages since last Friday, crossing into Turkey.
“The Sunni insurgents appeared to have taken control of a hill from where fighters of the YPG, the main Kurdish armed group in northern Syria, had been attacking them in recent days, 10 km (6 miles) west of Kobani.”
Lebanese Army Raids Syrian Refugee Camp, Torches Tents
In a sign that anti-Syrian sentiment in Lebanon could be continuing to rise, AFP reports that soldiers raided a refugee camp in the strategic border city of Arsal on Thursday, with residents accusing the Lebanese army of setting fire to tents.
“In a statement, the army said its forces were carrying out raids in one refugee camp in Arsal, in eastern Lebanon, when unknown attackers tried to set fire to tents in another neighboring camp.
“Three attackers on a motorbike attempted to set fire to the other camp, so army forces opened fire on them, killing one and wounding the others,” it said, but did not give further details about the fire.
Waiting to Die in Aleppo
Der Spiegel’s Christoph Reuter reports on the dire predicament of Aleppo’s last remaining civilians, spending a week with residents there.
“Shortly after 9 a.m. on Wednesday, there is the sound of rotors followed by an explosion, causing walls to shake hundreds of meters away. A light wind carries a giant cloud of dust across the sky. On the empty street, a woman carrying two plastic bags walks calmly in the direction of the impact, not even slowing her steps,” he writes.
“It isn’t far to the site, down wide Akjul Street and then to the left. Most of the buildings are riddled with bullet holes and curtains flutter out of broken windows. The buildings are still standing, but almost all are empty. On one skewed balcony, a man is watering his plants. He looks down without saying a word.
“A light coating of dust has settled in the area. Only minutes after the impact, a man covered in white dust goes to get some water, singing quietly, and washes his motorcycle, which is miraculously undamaged. ‘I heard it!’ says Muhsin, an electrician who has joined the rebels. He is referring to the brief hissing noise before impact. At the last minute, he jumped into the doorway of a concrete building.”