Thousands Flock to Turkey-Syria Border After Kurdish Advances in Kobane

Huge crowds flocked to Suruc, at Turkey’s border with Syria, on Tuesday, January 27, following reports that Kurdish fighters had reclaimed the besieged border town of Kobane from Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS or ISIL) militants. U.S. Central Command confirmed that anti-IS forces had taken control of approximately 90 percent of Kobane, in a statement released on January 26.

According to the Kurdish news agency Rudaw, Kurdish fighters took control of most neighborhoods in Kobane on Monday. An official statement released by the People’s Protection Units (YPG), a Syrian Kurdish militia, reported the fighters had advanced along the eastern front of the city.

This footage shows people returning to Suruc in packed trucks, and what looks like thousands celebrating on the edge of the border town. Credit: Facebook/Berxwedana Kobané