Turkish president questions focus on Kobani

PARIS (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the international community is focusing too much on the battle over Kobani and is calling for strikes in other parts of Syria.

Speaking at a news conference with French President Francois Hollande, Erdogan said, “We’re only talking about Kobani, a city on the Turkish border where there is almost no one left besides 2,000 fighters.”

“It’s difficult to understand this approach: why are coalition forces continually bombarding Kobani. Why don’t the coalition forces want to act in other zones?” Erdogan said.

Hollande said he considers Aleppo to be the most important city in the Syrian war, but Kobani remains important “even emptied of its population.” He said he’s confident Erdogan will allow reinforcements to reach Kobani from Turkey.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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