MESOP FOCUS : Fresh surge of violence hit Kobane city, north Syria

2-04-2014 – ARA News – Kobane, Syria– On Tuesday, clashes renewed between the Kurdish forces of the Popular Protection Units (YPG) and the Qaeda splinter group of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in several villages in the countryside of Kobane city, north of Aleppo.

Local sources in Kobane city told ARA News that the clashes concentrated in the villages of Zor Maghar and Kharab Atto (33 km western of Kobane city), adding that heavy weapons were used by both the ISIL and the YPG, without any casualties being reported.Meanwhile, the YPG forces called on the inhabitants of Zor Maghar village to evacuate their houses and head to nearby areas in Kobane countryside, amid clashes which erupted on Tuesday evening between them and ISIL fighters. The YPG fighters have also cut off all the roads leading to Kobane city from the western side −starting from the villages of Ta’lk, Derbazin and al-Qanaya− to prevent potential attacks by ISIL fighters against the city.

Residents of the Kurdish city of Kobane and its environs still suffer from poor humanitarian conditions due to the siege imposed by the ISIL fighters last week, local sources reported. The city experiences sharp shortage of food and medical supplies, amid mounting violence.   Reporting by: Ahmad Mustafa