U.S. officials said Thursday that though the chances of Islamic State militants capturing the Syrian border town of Kobani were less, it may still fall to the militants.
The U.S. official's statement comes in the wake of fierce battle taking place between the Islamic State and Syrian Kurdish fighters in Kobani on Thursday, with both sides making gains and suffering losses at the same time.
Officials at the U.S. military's Central Command warned that the Islamic State militants could eventually take over the town, though the coalition forces are carrying out air strikes and airdropping weapons to aid the Syrian Kurdish fighters repel the militants advances.
A U.S. defense official said that Kurdish fighters may be able to repel the Islamic State militants advances unless the present battle dynamics changes.
"With the current air strikes that are going on in support of the Kurdish fighters who know the town, the line has kind of stabilized," the official said, reports Reuters.
Another U.S. military official said that it was too early to say whether the resupply of weapons would have any affect in the battle. He also praised the Kurdish fighters saying "It (Kobani) could fall. But they're fighting very well right now."
However, when asked Kobani was in less in danger, he said: "I would say so."
Meanwhile, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan again reiterated Thursday that he opposed the U.S. decision to provide weapons to the Syrian Kurdish fighters.
"Turkey did never lean toward such military aid and the U.S. did that despite Turkey," Mr. Erdogan said, reports The Wall Street Journal citing state news agency Anadolu. .
Turkey believes that the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the main Kurdish group fighting against the Islamic State, is "no different" than the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has fought against Turkey for 30 years and is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and NATO.
