ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Security forces affiliated with the Damascus government are expected to arrive in the Kurdish city of Qamishli in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Tuesday as part of an integration agreement between the government and the Kurdish administration.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the interim government in Damascus reached a comprehensive agreement last week following weeks of clashes. The deal, brokered by international powers including France and the United States, stipulates that the Kurdish internal security forces (Asayish) will be integrated into the interior ministry.
A convoy of 15 vehicles carrying around 100 members of state-affiliated internal security forces arrived in the Kurdish city of Hasaka on Monday. Another convoy reached the besieged town of Kobane same day, while a similar number of armed personnel are expected to be deployed in Qamishli on Tuesday.
A 12-hour curfew, starting at 6 am local time, has been imposed in Qamishli to ensure the deployment proceeds without incident. Despite a similar curfew in Hasaka, some Arab residents took to the streets on Monday to welcome the state forces.
Kurdish forces say the deployment of the limited number of state forces is temporary, adding that they are tasked with integrating Asayish forces into the interior ministry. The government has not commented on how long these forces will remain in Rojava.
A Rudaw reporter in Qamishli said as of Tuesday morning the curfew appeared to be working as only security forces and journalists could be seen in the streets of the city.
Beyond security deployments, the agreement provides for the formation of a new military division comprising three brigades drawn from SDF forces, as well as a separate brigade for fighters from the Kurdish city of Kobane, which will fall under a division affiliated with Syria’s Aleppo province.
The deal also stipulates that the Autonomous Administration in northeast Syria will be integrated into Syrian state institutions, though SDF leaders have said local administrations and internal security will continue to be run by residents of the region.
The agreement follows a major offensive launched earlier this month by the Syrian Arab Army and Damascus-affiliated forces, which led to the SDF withdrawing from several areas, including parts of Aleppo, Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and areas near the predominantly Kurdish province of Hasaka. The fighting displaced tens of thousands of civilians, most of them Kurds, according to United Nations estimates.