MESOP : First unit of Peshmerga enters Kobane

ARA News – 30 Oct 2014 – Using the Turkish territory to reach the war-torn city, a Peshmerga military unit crossed into the Syrian border and headed to a Kurdish military base located about 10 km from the city of Kobane, military sources told ARA News. The Peshmerga forces, who entered Syria to back kinsmen against extremists of the Islamic State (IS/ISIL), are expected to arrive in Kobane’s downtown area in the coming hours.

Dozens of military vehicles loaded with heavy machine guns and ammunition accompanied the 155 officers and soldiers of the Peshmerga while crossing the Turkish border towards Kobane. The Peshmerga forces are expected to deploy in the western parts of Kobane near Tel Shaeer village, as well as in the northeastern areas to secure the Mursitpinar border crossing, which has been attacked by IS militants several times in the last two weeks.  The Peshmerga will be backing Kurdish forces of the Popular Protection Units (YPG) with heavy armory vehicles and tanks during clashes against IS radicals, Iraqi Kurdistan’s officials revealed earlier this week. Meanwhile, 40 vehicles carrying heavy weapons and equipment accompanied 80 Peshmerga soldiers from Erbil to Duhok in Iraqi Kurdistan and arrived to the Turkish border on Wednesday, to head then to Kobane through Turkey. According to official sources in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), 72 other soldiers and officers from the Peshmerga are heading to Turkey by air to join comrades in Kobane later this week.