Activists: Kurds, Syrian Rebels Seize Border Town from IS
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Date: 6/16/2015 7:02:01 AM
Sender: VOA
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In this photo taken from the Turkish side of the border between Turkey and Syria, in Akcakale, southeastern Turkey, a flag of the Kurdish People＇s Protection Units, or YPG, flies over the town of Tal Abyad, Syria, June 16, 2015.
Kurdish fighters and Syrian rebels were in full control of the key border town of Tal Abyad on Tuesday, activists said, after pushing out Islamic State fighters.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the militants fled to villages south and west of the city, and that a large number of land mines had been planted in Tal Abyad.
Seizing the city on the Turkish border cuts off an Islamic State group supply route to its main city of Raqqa located about 100 kilometers to the south. The militants have used the corridor to smuggle weapons and fighters into Syria and to achieve a key source of funding by selling oil on the black market.
Fighting in the area has sent thousands of Syrian civilians across the border to find safety in Turkey.
Concern about refugees
Turkish authorities are worried about adding to the already serious refugee problem and emboldening Kurdish militias, strengthening separatist sentiment among Turkey＇s Kurdish minority.
Meanwhile, United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura is in Damascus to meet with top Syrian government officials on efforts to reach a cease-fire in the country＇s civil war. He plans to stress that the Syrian government has a duty to protect civilians and that using such weapons as barrel bombs in civilian areas has to stop. |
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