GAZIANTEP, Turkey
It is every Syrian's duty to defend Ayn al-Arab (Kobani) as it is Syrian territory, a Syrian opposition leader told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.
The Free Syrian Army is critical in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Syrian National Coalition leader Hadi al-Bahra said.
"This war is not a war that will be over in a few days. It lingers on with hit-and-run tactics," he added.
Al-Bahra supports the Turkish proposal for the creation of a safe-zone inside Syria. Turkey was the first country to propose this idea, he said.
"The safe zone is both part of a strategic plan for refugees to return to Syria and a demand supported by Syrians. Turkey is one of the first countries with whom we negotiated the plan and its goals. We are still talking over the plan with the Group of Friends of the Syrian People," he said.
Turkey has strongly supported the creation of the safe zone before the international community, including the U.N., as well as the establishment of a no-fly zone and a safe haven for refugees inside Syria near the Turkish border.
The ISIL militants launched an offensive in September to capture the strategic town, located only a few hundred meters away from the Turkish border.
The Free Syrian Army is the main opposition army group in Syria and has been battling Syrian regime President Bashar al-Assad’s forces for three and a half years in a brutal civil war, one which has permitted ISIL militants to establish themselves in the region. In recent weeks, ISIL has been fighting Kurdish forces in Kobani for control of the town.
Al-Bahra said Turkey and the U.S. are already in agreement over the main principles and just need to work out the details, including that of a no-fly zone in Syria.
Thousands of civilians from Kobani have fled into Turkey since mid-September as their homes came under attack from ISIL militants.
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