ALEPPO, Syria
Claims the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has seized the Syrian city of Kobani have been denied by the Democratic Union Party, a Syrian-Kurd political party.
Anwar Muslim, a member of the party’s executive board, said: “We have been fighting ISIL for about six months. Some are saying that they have entered Kobani, but this is not true.”
Muslim accused the militants of cutting off electricity and water supplies and refusing to let humanitarian aid into the city, also known as Ayn al-Arab.
“ISIL is against humanity, they fight against Alevi and Sunnis, Kurds and Christians,” he said.
“Many people have left their villages, running away from ISIL. The youth took their families to Turkey and came back to fight against the terrorist organization.”
Though many have fled villages in ISIL’s path, the residents of Kobani and neighboring villages have stayed on to fight the militants, Muslim said.
ISIL’s cross-border "caliphate" has seen the killing of thousands and the displacement of millions in Iraq and Syria. To help ground forces fighting ISIL, the U.S. and its allies have conducted more than 200 airstrikes since August 7.
www.aa.com.tr/en
