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SDF terror organization announced Friday it will withdraw from contact areas east of Aleppo at 7:00 a.m. on Jan. 17, repositioning east of the Euphrates River, after Syrian army launched military operations targeting YPG/SDF positions in Deir Hafer.
Mazloum Abdi, the SDF ringleader, said the withdrawal follows calls from regional powers and mediators and demonstrates the group's commitment to complete an integration process in line with the March 10 agreement, which the group had been breaking until Friday retaliation of Syrian army. In a statement, Abdi said the group would pull back from current contact lines that have been under attack for the past two days.
Syria's Ministry of Defense welcomed the decision of withdrawal from contact areas west of the Euphrates River following intense bombardment in Deir Hafer. In a statement, the ministry confirmed it will oversee the complete withdrawal of all SDF terrorists and equipment east of the river, while Syrian Army forces deploy to the vacated areas to impose state sovereignty and enable residents to return
The withdrawal announcement came as Syrian military operations were already underway in Deir Hafer, a town east of Aleppo. Syrian army officials released maps identifying four specific locations where YPG/SDF terrorists and remnants of the former Assad regime have established positions, warning civilians to stay away from these marked sites ahead of strikes.
Syrian military statements described the targeted locations as launch points for attacks against Aleppo city and surrounding civilian areas using kamikaze drones and other weapons. Military reinforcements arrived via the international M4 highway to the Deir Hafer area on Jan. 14, positioning forces for the operation.
Syrian forces opened a humanitarian corridor along the M15 highway Thursday and Friday to allow temporary and safe evacuation of civilians from Deir Hafer. The Syrian army had declared the region west of the Euphrates River, including Deir Hafer and Meskene, a military zone on Jan. 13.
The YPG/SDF, linked to the PKK terrorist organization, has maintained control over portions of territory west of the Euphrates River. The SDF withdrawal would effectively move these groups out of territories the Syrian army designated as a military zone earlier this week.
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Withdrawal announcement came hours after Syria's president issued a landmark decree Friday guaranteeing cultural, linguistic and citizenship rights to the country's Kurdish population. Decree No. 13 declares Syrian Kurds "an integral and original part of the Syrian people" and nullifies exceptional measures from a 1962 census that stripped citizenship from an estimated 120,000 Kurds.
The decree recognizes Kurdish as a national language, permits its instruction in schools, establishes Newruz as a paid national holiday on March 21, and prohibits ethnic or linguistic discrimination. The president addressed Kurds directly, stating: "Do not believe the narratives of discord. Whoever harms you is our adversary."
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