What is "kobani"

Kobanî (‎ , also rendered ), officially Ayn al-Arab ( North Levantine pronunciation: ), is a city in the Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, lying immediately south of the border with Turkey. As a consequence of the Syrian Civil War, the city has been under control of the Kurdish YPG militia since 2012. In 2014, it was unofficially declared to be the administrative center of the Kobanî Canton of the autonomous Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava.

From September 2014 to January 2015, the city was under siege by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Most of the city was destroyed and most of the population fled to Turkey. In 2015, many returned and reconstruction began.

Prior to the Syrian Civil War, Kobanî was recorded as having a population of close to 45,000. The majority of inhabitants were Kurds, with Arab, Turkmen, and Armenian minorities.