US hails Turkish move to let Iraqi Kurdish fighters into Syria

State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said on Monday Washington is happy about Ankara’s policy reversal. "We welcome those statements from the foreign ministry.”
 
She added that an influx of well-trained fighters into Kobani could give a major boost to the Kurds currently defending the flashpoint city.
 
"I think as we’ve all seen ISIL pour more resources, more fighters into Kobani, the situation has become... increasingly serious," Harf said.
 
Harf also said that US officials are continuing to engage Turkey about other ways in which Ankara can help the anti-ISIL coalition.
 
On Monday, the Turkish foreign minister announced that Turkey is helping Iraqi Kurds cross into Syria.
 
Turkey's announcement came soon after the US military said it had dropped weapons, ammunition, and medical supplies to Kurdish fighters in Kobani.
 
Kobani and its surroundings have been under attack since mid-September, with ISIL militants capturing dozens of nearby Kurdish villages.
 
The intense fighting for the strategic town has forced some 200,000 people to take refuge in Turkey.
 
ISIL militants made swift advances in much of northern and western Iraq over the summer, after capturing large swaths of northern Syria.
 
Since late September, the US and some of its Arab allies -- Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates -- have been conducting airstrikes against ISIL inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate.