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Syria's government has reached a comprehensive agreement with the SDF terror group that will implement a ceasefire and begin integrating the group under state authority starting Monday, officials announced Friday.
Information Minister Hamza al-Mustafa told Syria TV that the deal represents a "positive step" toward consolidating government control and reducing tensions in northeastern Syria. The agreement builds on a January 18 accord by establishing specific implementation mechanisms for the cities of Hasakah and Qamishli.
"The situation in Syria after regaining control of Deir el-Zour and Raqqa is not what it was before," al-Mustafa said, adding that Syria's unity "is no longer at risk as it once was."
Under the agreement, SDF members will be integrated "individually" into military brigades under the Defense Ministry's command. The government will also assume control of the Rmeilan and al-Suwaydiyah oilfields and Qamishli airport within 10 days, according to al-Mustafa.
A newly appointed security director for Hasakah will take up his position Monday, coinciding with the start of implementation. The deal also calls for withdrawal of military forces from contact lines and deployment of Interior Ministry security forces into Hasakah and Qamishli city centers to reinforce stability.
Al-Mustafa criticized the SDF for attempting to position itself as the sole representative of Syrian Kurds and politicizing ethnic issues. The government has recently met with various Kurdish political groups, including the Kurdish National Council, to discuss concerns affecting the Kurdish community.
President Ahmad al-Sharaa issued a decree Jan. 16 affirming that Syrian Kurds are an integral part of the Syrian people and that their cultural and linguistic identity forms a core component of Syria's unified national identity.
The Syrian Army launched operations against the SDF on January 16 in areas west of the Euphrates River. The campaign later expanded east of the river with tribal forces participating, resulting in most territories previously held by the group coming under government control.
The January 18 agreement established a framework combining an immediate ceasefire with administrative, military and institutional reintegration of the SDF under Damascus' authority. Friday's announcement outlined the practical steps for implementing that earlier accord.
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