On Tuesday, the Syrian government announced a four-day ceasefire with the Kurdish SDF, which came with what appeared to amount to an ultimatum to agree to the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s (HTS) terms for integrating with the central government. The fighting never really stopped, and both sides were blaming the other right up until Saturday, when the ceasefire was scheduled to expire, and the Syrian Army announced it was extended another 15 days.
The Syrian Defense Ministry said that the extension was necessary to support the ongoing US transfer for ‘ISIS’ detainees into Iraq, and while Kurdish officials also confirmed the extension was in place, once again it doesn’t seem like the fighting is actually ending.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported relative calm prevailed in the Hasakeh Governorate in the far northeast of the country, though it was a tense situation where SDF forces remained in the populated areas and ready to contest military advances.
Security forces in Hasakeh Governorate | Image from SOHR
There were reports of shooting in Hasakeh, however, and at least two people were reported killed by SDF gunfire. In neighboring Deir Ezzor Governorate, pro-government militias were out in force, carrying out what the SOHR described as a “large-scale arrest campaign” against locals accused of any affiliation with the SDF.
The area around Kurdish-held Kobane still appears to be under effective siege, though the government has announced the creation of a humanitarian corridor into the city, and one aid convoy was allowed in, while the civilian population used the corridor largely to escape the siege.
A few weeks ago, the SDF controlled a vast swathe of territory in Syria, effectively everything east of the Euphrates River to the Iraqi border. Fighting in Aleppo quickly escalated, however, and the Syrian military has pressed gains, leading to them seizing much of the country.
The perception now is that the SDF and the Syrian Kurds in general are in deep trouble, with the US having announced this past week that they’re ending all military support for them, and officials are suggesting that the US is considering withdrawing from Syria entirely, arguing there is “no reason for the American military to stay” in the absence of support for the SDF.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R – SC) argues there is a “strong consensus” to support the Kurds against Syrian military advances, but that seems the exact opposite of the administration’s position, which is backing the HTS strongly and chiding the Kurds every time their integration gets delayed by another HTS offensive.
Whether the US actually ends up withdrawing remains to be seen, as it is equally plausible they could invent another mission in support of the al-Qaeda-adjacent HTS and keep the troops stationed there on that pretense. The Syrian Kurds were an excuse at the time, but that’s not to say that they’re the only one for an administration looking to justify an operation and position.
