BEIRUT, Lebanon: Kurdish-led forces withdrew on Sunday from Syria’s largest oil area within the japanese province of Deir Ezzor, a monitor mentioned, as their fighters clashed with authorities troopers who’ve prolonged their grip on Kurdish-run areas in current days.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) “withdrew at daybreak on Sunday from all areas underneath its management within the japanese Deir Ezzor countryside, together with the Al-Omar and Tanak oil fields”, the pinnacle of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, instructed AFP.
Syria’s military seized swathes of the nation’s north, dislodging Kurdish forces from territory over which they held efficient autonomy for greater than a decade.
The federal government gave the impression to be extending its grip on Kurdish-run areas after President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree declaring Kurdish a “nationwide language” and granting the minority group official recognition.
The Kurds have mentioned Friday’s announcement fell wanting their aspirations, whereas the implementation of a March deal — meant to see Kurdish forces built-in into the state — has stalled.
Authorities troops drove Kurdish forces from two Aleppo neighborhoods final week and on Saturday took management of an space east of the town.
On Sunday, the federal government introduced the seize of Tabqa, about 55 kilometers (34 miles) west of Raqa.
“The Syrian military controls the strategic metropolis of Tabqa within the Raqqa countryside, together with the Euphrates Dam, which is the most important dam in Syria,” mentioned Data Minister Hamza Almustafa, based on the official SANA information company.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), nevertheless, mentioned that they had “taken the required measures to revive safety and stability” in Tabqa.
In Deir Hafer, some 50 kilometers east of Aleppo metropolis, an AFP correspondent noticed a number of SDF fighters leaving the city and residents returning underneath heavy military presence.
Syria’s military mentioned 4 troopers had been killed, whereas Kurdish forces reported a number of fighters lifeless. Either side traded blame for violating a withdrawal deal.
Kurdish authorities ordered a curfew within the Raqa area after the military designated a swath of territory southwest of the Euphrates River a “closed army zone”, warning it might goal what it mentioned have been a number of army websites.
The SANA information company reported Sunday that the SDF destroyed two bridges over the Euphrates in Raqa metropolis, which lies on the japanese financial institution of the river.
Raqa’s media directorate individually accused the SDF of slicing off Raqa metropolis’s water provide by blowing up the primary water pipes.
Deir Ezzor governor Ghassan Alsayed Ahmed mentioned on social media that the SDF fired “rocket projectiles” at neighborhoods in government-controlled territories within the metropolis middle of Deir Ezzor, Al-Mayadin, and different areas.
The SDF mentioned “factions affiliated with the Damascus authorities attacked our forces’ positions” and induced clashes in a number of cities on the east financial institution of the Euphrates, reverse Al-Mayadin and which lies between Deir Ezzor and the Iraqi border.
