Turkey Shelters Almost 200,000 Refugees From Syria’s Kobani

Turkey currently hosts over 190,000 refugees from the Syrian town of Kobani, one of the largest cities in the Kurdish region, which is currently being defended from the Islamic State militants.

ANKARA, December 20 (Sputnik) – Turkey currently hosts over 190,000 refugees from the Syrian town of Kobani, which is trying to fight off Islamic State (IS) jihadists, the country's Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) announced Saturday.

"Starting from September 19, when military action started in the Kobani region, 192,417 people came to Turkey from that town, the border was crossed by 3,072 vehicles," AFAD said in a statement.

According to the department, over 27,800 thousand Kobani refugees have received treatment at Turkish hospitals and about 60,000 children have been vaccinated.

Kobani was besieged by IS, also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), in September. The town is one of the largest in the Kurdish region bordering Turkey.

Kurdish self-defense forces have been defending the town with the help of a US-led international coalition, which is currently conducting airstrikes against IS targets in Syria and Iraq.