ISIS Retreating From Kobani, But Advancing Closer To Baghdad

ISIS is finally showing signs of leaving Kobani, the town near the Turkish border in Syria, but the terror group could soon be near Baghdad.

A local official from Kobani told BBC NewsISIS once controlled almost half the city, but now controls less than 20 percent of the town.

For about a month, ISIS and Kurdish fighters have been fighting fiercely over Kobani. Airstrikes from the U.S. military are adding to the force of Kurdish ground fighters in pushing the militants back.

Some Kurdish fighters believe the U.S. airstrikes are helping them to take control of Kobani, but a Kurdish lawmaker in northern Iraq does not believe the airstrikes are enough help to rid the town of the militants.

According to Al-Jazeera, the U.S. military claims ISIS numbers have been reduced with the help of airstrikes, but it also warns the town could still be taken over by the terror group.

Rear Admiral John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesperson, explained the damage done to ISIS with about 50 airstrikes over 48 hours.

“We know we’ve killed several hundreds of them.”

The U.N. warns a massacre will surely happen if ISIS regains control of the town. Although some residents remain in Kobani, most have fled to Turkey to escape the wrath of ISIS.

While the United States has recently focused its airstrikes more on Kobani than Iraq because of bad weather, ISIS continues to make progress into the Anbar province in Iraq.

Time reports ISIS is moving in on a town only 25 miles from Baghdad.

Kirby insists weather will improve and the focus will go back to Iraq.

“As the weather improves, I think… you’ll see continued pressure applied as appropriate and as we’re able to.”

Admittedly, President Obama told military leaders from 22 countries in a meeting that he is “deeply concerned” about the advances of ISIS in Syria and Iraq. However, Obama claims there has been success in driving ISIS out of areas such as Erbil and Mosul, according to Al-Jazeera.

Obama warned the fight against ISIS will be a “long-term campaign” but made no mention of specific military strategies other than airstrikes.

“There are not quick fixes involved. We are still in the early stages. As with any military effort, there will be days of progress and there are going to be periods of setbacks, but our coalition is united behind this long-term effort.”

Kobani is certainly not completely out of the grip of ISIS yet, and time will only show whether the airstrikes will keep ISIS from advancing even closer to Baghdad without the use of ground troops.

[Image via AP]