The Syrian government and the SDF agreed on a one-month extension of the ceasefire, which was supposed to expire on Saturday. A key reason is the need to transfer thousands of Islamic State prisoners to Iraq.
The Syrian government and fighters of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have agreed to extend the ceasefire, which is set to expire on Saturday. Several sources told AFP on condition of anonymity, reports TASR.
Neither the government nor the SDF have commented on the news about the extension of the four-day ceasefire. According to two sources, the ceasefire will be extended by a month.
Extension of the ceasefire
The Syrian Ministry of Defense announced on Tuesday that it had concluded a four-day ceasefire with the SDF. According to the Syrian president’s office, an understanding has been reached between the two sides regarding the future of Hasaka province in northeastern Syria, which is a stronghold of the country’s Kurdish minority.
A diplomatic source in Damascus told AFP that the ceasefire, due to expire on Saturday, would be extended “by one month at the most”.
Transfer of IS prisoners
A Kurdish source familiar with the negotiations confirmed that the ceasefire would be extended “until a mutually acceptable political solution is reached”.
According to the Syrian official, one of the reasons for the extension of the ceasefire is the need to complete the transfer of the detained jihadists of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) from Syria to Iraq. The United States launched an operation on Wednesday to transfer hundreds of IS-linked detainees from northeastern Syria to neighboring Iraq. A total of up to 7,000 prisoners could be transferred from Syria to Iraq.
The situation in the camps
In recent days, the Syrian army has occupied areas previously controlled by the SDF in northeastern Syria. There are several camps and prisons for IS fighters and their families.
Until now, the SDF was responsible for guarding and managing these facilities. As a result of the offensive, they had to withdraw from the Haul camp, among other places. It is the largest camp for IS-related fighters in Syria and was declared a closed zone on Wednesday for security reasons.
