Heavy Fighting against ISIS in Syria Near Turkish Border

U.S. in the air, Iraqi troops by land

US-led warplanes pummelled Islamic State fighters in Syria Friday as Iraqi forces fought the jihadists west of Baghdad, with the US military reiterating that Iraq is its top priority.

As fighting raged on several fronts, Al-Qaeda's Yemen-based franchise urged Muslims worldwide to support the IS group in Syria and Iraq.

The US commander overseeing the air war hailed "encouraging" signs in the defence of Kobane, but said the Syrian town on the Turkish border could still fall to IS and insisted that Iraq was the coalition's top focus.