Ten Iraqi Peshmerga fighters have entered the Syrian border town of Kobani after crossing the Turkish border on Thursday, activists said.
The development comes in the wake of Turkey announcing last week that it will allow Iraqi Kurdish fighters or the Peshmerga to cross its border into Syria to support the Syrian Kurds fighting against the Islamic State militants in Kobani.
Kobani-based activist Mustafa Bali said that 10 Peshmerga fighters have entered Kobani and the remaining 140 fighters will arrive later in the day.
"The first 10 are now with the People's Protection Units and they include doctors and fighters and the rest are expected to enter in the coming hours at night," Bali said, reports the Associated Press.
The People's Protection Units, also known as the YPG, are the main group fighting against the Islamic State in Northern Syria.
Safeen Dizayee, spokesman for the Iraqi Kurdistan regional government said that the Peshmerga fighers were armed with heavy guns including mortars, canons and rocket launchers, reports The Guardian.
Dizayee said that the Peshmerga would play a supporting role instead of engaging in combat as Kurdish fighters in Kobani have said they need weapons and ammunition. He also said that more Peshmerga fighters may be sent depending upon the need.
Meanwhile, analysts said that the arrival of Peshmerga to support the Syrian Kurds may not result in a major shift in the fight against the Islamic State militants.
"In terms of a major war that's of some significance to U.S. national security, the arrival of 150 militiamen to an area is probably not of tectonic significance," Steve Biddle, a senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations, told CNN .
However, Washington Institute defense fellow Jeff White said that Kobani is militarily important because the Islamic State militants are not able to engage in combat in other parts of Syria as they are involved in Kobani.
