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Kurdish fighters make gains in and around Kobanê

 
YPG-YPJ counteroffensive forces back IS gihadists, who still control eastern side of the town · Kurdish militia tries to re-gain Mistenur Hill, says its fighters now have operational capacity to attack IS supply lines · US-led coalition airstrikes continue on IS positions

Kurdish and Syrian sources agree that YPG-YPJ Kurdish militia has been for days making gains in and around Western Kurdish (Syria) town of Kobanê. The YPG-YPJ push has forced the Islamic State (IS) fighters to withdraw from areas south and east of the town. According to these reports, the Kurdish troops are now in control of most of Kobanê, and are also gaining hold of some rural areas of the immediate surroundings.

According to the latest YPG statement, the Kurdish militia has progressed towards the east and south of the town, while it has conducted "operations against terrorist positions" in the villages of Minaz and Gire Iza. The Kurdish advance has been confirmed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

In an interview yesterday with analyst Mutlu Civiroglu, YPJ commander Meryem Kobani explains that the Kurdish militia now has capacity to attack the roads through which the IS receives reinforcements, whether they come from Raqqa, Tal Abyad or Jarablus. Kobani says the YPG-YPJ also gained operational capacity in Mistenur Hill, a key area to control southern Kobanê. The Kurdish militia is now trying to regain control over that hill.

The YPG-YPJ are re-gaining ground with the support of South Kurdistan (Iraq) Peshmerga units, some Syrian Free Army fighters (including the Kurdish group Jabhat al-Akrad), and airstrikes by US-led coalition jets. South Kurdish news site Rudaw reported that those strikes continue today in Kobanê and surroundings. These are some of the pictures shared by Rudaw on Twitter:

Twitter user Nathan Ruser released two maps on the situation in Kobanê. The first one very roughly reflects areas currently held by the YPG-YPJ (yellow). It can be seen that the IS only controls the eastern side of the town, and that it has further lost control over some rural areas west and south of Kobanê:

In this regard, journalist Zara Misto, also in an interview with Mutlu Civiroglu, estimated that the IS now controls some 25% to 30% of Kobanê. At the time of maximum jihadi advance, IS fighters had 60% of the town in their hands. The following one is Nathan Ruser's second map, describing areas outside Kobanê where YPG-YPJ enjoyed operational presence ten days ago:

 

Moreover, YPG commanders in the canton of Afrîn (the westernmost of the three cantons of Western Kurdistan) have issued a statement in which they say Kurdish fighters are ready to repel any attack on their territory. The reason for the statement are reports that Jabhat al-Nusra, one of the Islamist groups operating in Syria, is preparing an assault on the canton of Afrîn.