Battle for Kobani in Western (Syrian) Kurdistan in 2014‒2015

The article is devoted to one of the key episodes of the large–scale offensive of the forces of the terrorist organization “Islamic State” in 2014 ‒ the fighting in the canton of Kobani and the siege by terrorists of the city of Ain al-Arab (Kobani). The aim of this article is to assess the reasons for the initial successes of the “Islamic State” in the occupation of the canton and the city of Kobani in the context of the political struggle of various parties and groups for power in the “Democratic Federation of Northern Syria”. The author considers the ISIL militants’ offensive on Kobani in two aspects: firstly, as an attempt by ISIL to gain access to Turkey and further to other countries in the region, and secondly, as a reason for the unification of diverse resistance forces in the Kobani area and in the surrounding territories. The author of the study concludes that the actions of the Turkish authorities, which not only did not provide direct assistance to the Syrian Kurds, but also prevented other forces from coming to the aid of the defenders of the city of Kobani, were a failure. Such actions during difficult days for the Syrian Kurds did not contribute in any way to the settlement of the conflict between the Kurds and Turkey in the long term.