10/1/14, "ISIS Fighters Overrun Kurdish Village in Syria," NY Times, MERTISMAIL, Turkey
Islamic State militants swept into a Kurdish village in Syria
on Wednesday just across the border from this Turkish hamlet, as farther
south, in the central Syrian city of Homs, twin car bombs killed at
least 45 people, including 41 children, according to the Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights, an antigovernment monitoring group.
There
was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombings. Video posted
online showed people running and shrieking amid black smoke, and
sidewalks littered with body parts, before a second explosion went off.
The
bombs struck near an elementary school in Akrama, an area that is home
to many government supporters and has been targeted before by jihadist
groups like the Nusra Front; militants from the Islamic State, also
known as ISIS, have recently increased their presence in Homs Province
as well.
Meanwhile,
the conflict continues across the country between Syrian insurgents,
the Islamic State and the government, which has continued bombarding
opposition-held areas. The Syrian Network for Human Rights said
Wednesday that in September alone, 2,375 people died in the conflict; of
those, more than 1,700 were killed by government forces, among them 294
children.
On the Turkish border, Islamic State militants who have been using tanks and artillery in a 10-day onslaught
on a Syrian Kurdish area of farming villages advanced to within two
miles of the area’s main town, Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab.
At
least 50 fighters, carrying the black flags of the Islamic State,
reached the village of Kazikan on Tuesday, where numerous Kurdish men
had camped against the border fence with their cars and livestock,
hoping that the nearby presence of Turkish soldiers would protect them.
The
Kurdish men squeezed through the fence and remained on the other side,
watching Islamic State fighters arriving one by one, on foot or on
motorcycles, and driving away with the Kurds’ cars. The men pleaded with
Turkish soldiers to help, but the soldiers shouted at them and made
them leave the area.
“I
worked as a laborer for 30 years before I was able to pay $15,000 for
my Mitsubishi,” said Omar Hammao, 45, after watching his car get stolen.
“Delivering goods was my way to feed my family on a daily basis. I
think that the coalition airstrikes might be able to push ISIS away, but
I don’t think they will be able to give me back my car, or the life I
had.”
The United States-led coalition has carried out several airstrikes in the area against the Islamic State group, but Kurdish fighters have pleaded for more aid as they struggle to hold off the assault.
Kobani
has been bombarded for the past three days, driving out new refugees to
join more than 150,000 who have already fled to Turkey. On Wednesday,
the shelling was more frequent and sustained.
A
Kurdish militant who gave only a first name, Wayss, said his fighters
were now “preparing for guerrilla war,” adding that it was “the only way
to face Daesh,” using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State.
He said three Kurds had been killed trying to cross minefields to reach the Turkish border."
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