In a big step for Syria, U.S.-backed Kurdish forces will merge with government army
The Kurdish-led coalition that with U.S. troops fought Islamic State, will integrate with the Syrian government forces previously affiliated with Al Qaeda.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish-led coalition that joined with U.S. troops to fight the Islamic State terrorist group, has agreed to integrate with the same interim Syrian government forces that were previously affiliated with Al Qaeda, officials said.
The two groups struck the deal Monday after days of deadly sectarian violence between government forces and those loyal to the deposed Assad regime rocked Syria and killed hundreds of civilians.
While the SDF was largely uninvolved with those clashes, it has long been opposed to both the old and the new Syrian leadership. The new truce will see two of Syria's largest warring groups join forces despite the apparently contradictory allies both previously kept.
The agreement, which was reached following a meeting in Damascus on Monday between interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF leader Mazloum Abdi, will see the SDF cede control of the civil and military institutions it controls in northeastern Syria, including an airport and oil and gas fields, the Syrian government said in a statement.
The entrance to the city of Latakia in northwestern Syria on Monday, following a wave of violence in recent days.Moawia Atrash / dpa/picture alliance via Getty IThe deal also outlines the guarantee for the rights of all Syrians to "representation and participation in the political process" regardless of "religious and ethnic backgrounds," a statement from the Syrian government said.
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