"The situation is very critical," the People's Democratic Party (HDP) party said in a statement.

"We are calling on our people to take to streets and protest ISIS attacks and the AKP's stance toward Kobane," it said, referring to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

The trouble in the border city of Kobane risks poisoning Turkey's peace talks with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), with many Kurds saying the fall of Kobane would be as traumatic as the fall of a main Kurdish city inside Turkey.

Many Turkish Kurds are frustrated with the Turkish government, accusing Ankara of cooperating with IS militants to defeat the idea of an independent Kurdistan.

They are also angry that Turkey has so far launched no military intervention against IS despite having parliamentary authorisation.

Witnesses said hundreds of Kurds congregated in the border town of Suruc after the HDP's statement to walk to Kobane late Monday night.

In Istanbul, clashes took place between police and pro-Kurdish masked protesters, who blocked a road in the Beyoglu district and hurled fireworks and Molotov cocktails at security forces. The group set fire to a vehicle, Turkish media reported.

In the city's restive Gazi neighbourhood, protesters set fire to a bus, according to local media.