MURSITPINAR, Turkey: Attacking Islamic State (IS) jihadists met firm Kurdish resistance in the Syrian battleground town of Kobane on Sunday (Monday in Manila), as neighboring Turkey heeded pressure to intervene and handed the US access to its air bases.

In Iraq, however, Islamic State (IS) fighters have government forces under strong pressure, and a roadside bomb killed the police chief in Anbar province between Baghdad and the Syrian border.