Syrian government and Kurdish forces reach deal on permanent truce | Syria
The Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces agreed to turn the fragile ceasefire into a permanent ceasefire, creating a framework for the integration of Kurdish forces into the state and ending nearly a month of fighting.
Friday’s deal appeared to resolve rising tensions between the two sides over the issue of Kurdish autonomy in northeastern Syria and paved the way for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to join Syria’s new army through negotiations rather than fighting.
It was also a turning point for Damascus, which has been trying to expand its control over the entire Syrian territory shared by rival militias and forces for 14 years. The SDF previously controlled about a quarter of the country and all of its main oil fields, posing a serious challenge to the fledgling state’s rule.
This came after Syrian government forces, with the help of Arab and tribal elements, swept through northeastern Syria, narrowing the area controlled by the SDF by nearly 80%. The SDF chose to withdraw mainly from Arab-majority areas but was preparing to defend Kurdish-majority cities against government forces when the agreement was signed on Friday.
Under the agreement, both sides will withdraw their fighters from front lines in northeastern Syria and government security forces will enter the cities of Hasakah and Qamishli, strongholds of Kurdish authority. The SDF will be integrated into the army and the Syrian state will absorb the civilian institutions of the Kurdish authority.
A new military brigade will be established in the Syrian army, consisting of three SDF brigades, and SDF fighters will be placed under government command in Aleppo.
The Kurdish authority has been operating as a de facto autonomous region with its own governing institutions and armed forces for nearly a decade. Under Friday’s agreement, the scope of autonomy will be significantly reduced and replaced by the unitary administration of Damascus.
The agreement, which was made to reassure the Kurds, one of Syria’s largest ethnic minorities, also included “guaranteeing the civil and educational rights of the Kurdish people and the return of the displaced to their own regions.”
The agreement includes the following statements: “The agreement aims to unite the Syrian territory and realize the process of full integration in the region by increasing cooperation between the relevant parties and uniting efforts to rebuild the country.”
The deal was praised by US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack, who has been mediating heavily between the two sides over the past two weeks to prevent a full-scale war. He called it a “profound and historic turning point.”
“This carefully negotiated step, building on previous frameworks and recent efforts to reduce tensions, reflects a shared commitment to the inclusion of all Syrian communities, mutual respect and collective dignity,” Barrack said in a post on X on Friday.
Friday’s agreement was more advantageous for the Kurdish authority than previous ceasefire agreements and appears to have resulted from intense diplomacy by the United States and France, which maintain good relations with both sides. This also meant that the Kurdish autonomous project in northeastern Syria was effectively over, but with relatively little bloodshed.
