Prevent massacre of civilians in Kobani: Ban Ki-moon
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on the international community to prevent a “massacre” of civilians in Syria's Kobani, as a pitched battle rages on between Kurdish fighters and the ISIL militants in the strategic town.
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Addressing reporters after an international conference in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, Ban expressed great concern over the situation in and around the Syrian border town.
“Thousands of lives are at stake. I once again call on all the parties to stand up to prevent a massacre of civilians in Kobani,” the UN chief demanded.
The UN has warned that hundreds of civilians in the northern town are facing the risk of being massacred, if the militants sever the sole escape route to its border with Turkey.
On Friday, the UN envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, warned that thousands of people "will most likely be massacred" if Kobani falls into the hands of the ISIL Takfiri militants.
“We know, we have seen it, what ISIL is capable of doing when they take over a city. We know what they are capable of doing with their own victims, with women, children, minorities and hostages,” he said.
“It’s not through UN resolutions that ISIL will stop attacking Kobani,” he said, adding, “Everyone who can, should be doing what he can in order to control and hopefully stop this atrocious terrorist movement, especially when they are clearly indicating where they are going.”
The border town is still under ISIL fire despite more than three weeks of airstrikes by the US-led coalition on the militants' positions.
Since September 22, the US, along with its regional allies, has been conducting airstrikes against the ISIL inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate. The US began its airstrike campaign against the Iraq-based Takfiri terrorists in August.
This is while many of the countries joining the so-called anti-terror coalition, such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, have reportedly been the staunch supporters of the ISIL Takfiri elements in the region.
Over 500 people have been killed in Kobani. Nearly 200,000 people have been forced to take refuge in Turkey since the ISIL attacks started in mid-September.
