Syrian government strikes a breakthrough deal with Kurdish-led forces
By Middle East correspondent Eric Tlozek
Topic:Unrest, Conflict and War
16m ago16 minutes agoMon 10 Mar 2025 at 10:33pm
Ahmed al-Sharaa, shakes hands with Mazloum Abdi, in front of Syrian flags
Interim Syrian President Ahmed Al Sharaa (right) and Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi (left) signed the deal in Damascus on Monday, March 10. (AP: SANA)
In short:
Syria's interim government has signed a deal with Kurdish-led authorities to integrate their forces into the Syrian army.
The agreement brings most of the country under government control following the ouster of the Assad regime in December.
What's next?
The breakthrough deal may ease tensions with Türkiye and armed groups.
Syria's new government has signed a deal to integrate Kurdish forces in a breakaway region that played a key role in the fight against the Islamic State terrorist group.
Interim Syrian President Ahmad Al Sharaa and Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi signed the deal in Damascus on Monday, March 10.
A Kurdish administration has been running a self-declared autonomous region, called Rojava, in northern Syria since 2014.
The United States armed and trained its military wing, the Syrian Democratic Forces, which was instrumental in defeating the Islamic State in Syria.
But Türkiye, which has fought a Kurdish separatist insurgency for 40 years, opposed and attacked the autonomous administration, saying it was linked to the banned terrorist group, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Turkish forces and the Syrian armed groups they support have attacked Kurdish militias in northern Syria since the fall of the Assad regime in Damascus in December.
The new Syrian government said its new deal with the Kurds would incorporate the autonomous administration into the Syrian state.
"[It includes] the integration of all civil and military institutions in north-eastern Syria into the administration of the Syrian state, including border crossings, airports, and oil and gas fields," the government said in a statement.
"Ensuring the rights of all #Syrians to representation and participation in the political process and all state institutions based on merit, regardless of their religious or ethnic background."
"Recognising the Kurdish community as an integral part of the #Syrian state, with full citizenship rights and constitutional protections."
Person standing on a car roof holding the Syrian flag at night with traffic and illuminated buildings in the background.
Residents in Damascus celebrate the deal and hope it will end the fighting with Turkiye and armed groups. (Reuters: Khalil Ashawi)
Social media videos showed residents in north-eastern Syria celebrating the deal with the government, which they hope will end the fighting with Türkiye and armed groups.
The Syrian government and Kurdish administration have committed to implementing the agreement by the end of the year.
The Kurdish administration continues to secure thousands of former Islamic State members and internally displaced people in eastern Syria, including dozens of Australians.
United States troops are also based in the region to continue the fight against IS remnants and protect oil fields.
Posted16m ago16 minutes agoMon 10 Mar 2025 at 10:33pm
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