ISIS Update: Kurds Gain Against Islamic State in Syria, Monitoring Group Reports

Kurdish fighters battling ISIS in Kobani, Syria, say they've won control of 80 percent of the strategic city, AFP and CNN reported Monday.

Both news agencies cited reports by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group based in London. "The People's Protection Units (YPG) fighting the jihadists (IS) for nearly four months have full control of the security district," the group said, according to AFP.

Amid the ISIS offensive in Iraq and Syria, the fight for Kobani on the Turkish border has united historically factious Kurds, and has drawn international military support as well. Last week, a dozen U.S.-led airstrikes near three Syrian cities, including Kobani, "destroyed Islamic State vehicles, buildings and fighting positions and also hit a large Islamic State unit," Reuters reported.

Last month, Kurdish fighters claimed control of 50 percent of the city. “Duress brings the Kurds together, and they’re more unified now than they were before,” David Phillips, the director of Columbia University’s program on peace-building and rights, and a senior adviser to the State Department for the last three administrations, told International Business Times in October. “The only group that has shown any mettle on the battlefield are the Kurds.”