“The central government of Syria and the main Kurdish militias on Sunday, January 18, concluded a broad agreement on the cessation of hostilities. The agreement provides for the transition of the Kurdish civil and military authorities under the control of Damascus, effectively eliminating the semi-autonomy of the region in the northeast of the country.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a ceasefire agreement with Kurdish forces Source: Reuters
Details: Under the terms of the deal, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which have ruled the semi-autonomous region for more than a decade, agreed to withdraw their troops from the two Arab-majority provinces. We are talking about Deir ez-Zor – the main oil and grain region of the country, as well as Raqqa, where the key hydroelectric plants on the Euphrates are located.
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The 14-point agreement, released by the Syrian president’s office, includes the signatures of President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi. According to state media, the parties signed the document separately.
The document provides for strict integration conditions:
- All SDF forces would be integrated into the central ministries of defense and interior as “separate units” rather than as integral Kurdish units (the latter was the SDF’s demand).
- All border crossings, gas and oil fields are transferred to the control of the government.
- Damascus is taking control of prisons and camps holding Islamic State militants and allied civilians captured after the group was defeated in 2017.
A Syrian government official said the transfer of control over Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor should take place within the next 24 to 48 hours.
At the same time, the agreement contains certain concessions for the Kurds. In particular, the SDF will be able to nominate military and civilian figures for key positions in the central government. In Haseke province, which has a significant Kurdish population and is the SDF’s main stronghold, the governor will be appointed by consensus.
It also obliges the SDF to expel all non-Syrian figures associated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Kurdish militant group that Turkey considers a terrorist organization.
US special envoy Tom Barrack called the agreement a “turning point” but noted that there is still difficult work ahead on detailing comprehensive integration.
On Saturday, Barrack met with SDF commander-in-chief Abdi in Kurdistan, Iraq, and on Sunday with Sharaa in Damascus.
The SDF commander plans to meet with the Syrian president in Damascus on Monday, January 19, to discuss the details of the deal.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry welcomed the agreement, expressing the hope that it will contribute to the security of the region, and emphasized that the future of Syria is “in unity, integration and cohesion, not in terrorism and division.”
What preceded:
- After the ouster of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in late 2024, the new Syrian government and the SDF have been in integration talks for the past year. The deadline was the end of 2025.
- After the deadline passed without significant progress, armed clashes broke out, which turned into an offensive by government forces on Kurdish-controlled territories. The Syrian army has captured a number of territories, including oil fields, despite US calls for a ceasefire.
- Kurdish fears of the Sharaa government have intensified since outbreaks of sectarian violence last year, when nearly 1,500 Alawites were killed by pro-government forces in western Syria and hundreds of Alawites died in the south, some by execution.