Kurds push back IS in Syria's Kobane

Kurdish fighters now control 80 per cent of Kobane after pushing back Islamic State jihadists, a monitoring group says.

Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) soldiers walk near the town entrance circle heading to their strongholds in Kobani, Syria. (AP Photo/Jake Simkin)

Kurdish fighters have seized the security and government district of Syria's Kobane from the Islamic State jihadist group and now control 80 per cent of the border town, a monitoring group says.

"The People's Protection Units (YPG) fighting the jihadists (IS) for nearly four months have full control of the security district," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Monday.

The Britain-based group said Kurdish fighters had seized control of the area after fierce clashes since Sunday night.

A US-led coalition against IS also carried out at least three air strikes against the jihadist group in the town on the Turkish border, the Observatory said.

At least 14 IS members were killed in the fighting, it added.

IS began its assault on Kobane in mid-September and came close to overrunning the town, which is also known as Ain al-Arab.

But Kurdish fighters, backed by international air strikes, have been able to gradually recapture territory in the small town, which is strategic because of its location on the border.