SDF gives up ground in northeast Syria as Turkish-backed offensive heats up
The Kurdish-led SDF is facing threats from the HTS government in Damascus and the Turkish-backed SNA
Militants from the US-backed Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have withdrawn from several Arab towns in eastern Syria, sources in the area told The National, in response to military pressure from Syria’s new ruling faction in Damascus and Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) militants in the country’s north.
Over the past day, militants from the SDF have withdrawn from four Arab-majority towns on the Euphrates River in the Raqqa and Deir Ezzor governorates, a group official told The National.
Militants from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the former Al-Qaeda affiliate that now rules Damascus, replaced the SDF in the four Arab towns: Maadan, Thiban, Basira, and Zir, the official stated.
The withdrawal was ordered to better defend the Kurdish-majority areas further east, including Hasakah and Qamishli, as well as around the strategic Tishreen Dam in the north where the SDF is battling the Turkish-backed SNA.
“The situation on the ground is changing every minute. The Turks are escalating, so the SDF is focusing on preserving the Kurdish areas and preventing a breakthrough at Tishreen,” the official added.
A Telegram group linked to HTS said its fighters had entered the four towns, showing videos of them after their capture.
Fighting between the SDF and SNA in north Syria escalated as HTS launched its lightning offensive from Idlib Governorate to topple the government of president Bashar al-Assad in Damascus in December.
The SDF was created by the US military in 2015 to help it capture strategic territory from ISIS in eastern Syria, including Arab tribal areas where most of the country’s oil and gas deposits are located. The US had covertly supported ISIS as it took over swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq in 2014.
The Kurdish-led SDF faced several revolts by Arab tribal forces backed by Assad’s government in recent years.
On Monday, HTS militants representing the new government in Damascus appeared ready to join the conflict on the side of the SNA. Syria TV reported that a convoy of HTS militants had arrived on the frontlines near the Tishreen Dam area.
Amid the fighting, three sets of negotiations are taking place: between the US, SDF, and HTS, between Turkiye and HTS, and between the SDF and HTS, accordingto Reuters, which cited sources from all parties.
In an effort to bring northeast Syria under state control, HTS officials are demanding that the SDF, viewed as an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), lay down their weapons and join a new Syrian army as individuals.
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi stated that his group is only willing to integrate into the Defense Ministry as “a military bloc” without dissolving.