Hammond: Defending Kobani 'a very difficult situation'

The US has implemented some additional air strikes to try and help the people who are defending Kobani but it is a very difficult situation on the ground and we have never envisaged that the coalition's intervention with air power in this battle was going to turn the tide in the short term.

We have got to degrade Isil's military capability over time, that isn't going to happen overnight. So I don't want to suggest that there is anything readily that the coalition can do that will make a fundamental difference on the ground in this battle, in the tactical situation that's faced around Kobani. Self evidently it could fall.

The Americans are committed to doing what they can to support the defence the town with additional air strikes. But this is a long struggle here against a poisonous ideology and an organisation which has built up some very significant military capabilities.

Although we the coalition are confident that we will win that strategic battle we cannot say with confidence that we will be able to win any specific tactical engagement