Syria’s interim President, Ahmed al-Sharaa, on Monday reached a deal with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, SDF, chief, Mazloum Abdi, to integrate the latter into the country’s new armed forces.
Following a meeting between al-Sharaa and Abdi, it was agreed to integrate all civil and military institutions in northeast Syria under the administration of the Syrian state.
“This also includes border crossings, the airport, and oil and gas fields,” according to a statement by the Syrian Presidency.
The statement further added that “executive committees should work and seek to implement [the provisions] of the agreement” by the end of this year.
“The Kurdish community is indigenous to the Syrian state, which ensures this community’s right to citizenship and all of its constitutional rights,” the statement added.
Recall that al-Sharaa had been calling on the SDF and other armed groups that emerged during the 13-year civil war to integrate under the command of the new Defence Ministry.
However, an agreement with the Kurdish-led force had remained elusive.
The SDF, formed in 2015, is backed by the United States in its fight against the Islamic State, ISIS.
It also captured ISIS’ final territory in Syria in 2019 and currently holds tens of thousands of ISIS fighters in detention centres.
