ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s interior ministry has removed Sipan Hamo, a former commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), from its red-category list of people wanted on terrorism charges, following his appointment as a deputy Syrian defence minister, a Turkish media outlet reported.
Cumhuriyet, a Turkish opposition newspaper, reported on Friday that Hamo’s name no longer appears on the interior ministry’s wanted list, indicating that Ankara had quietly removed him. Other reports said his name was still on the list when he was appointed to the senior post in Syria’s transitional government.
Rudaw English confirmed on Saturday that Hamo’s name no longer appears on the list.
Turkish authorities have not publicly explained the reason for his removal.
The Syrian government and the SDF signed an agreement in late January, brokered by the US and France and endorsed by Turkey, following weeks of clashes that significantly reduced the SDF’s control over areas it had held in Syria.
The deal centers on integrating the SDF, as well as civilian and security institutions in Kurdish-held northeast Syria (Rojava), into Syrian state structures.
As part of the agreement, Damascus has offered several senior positions to former SDF commanders and Kurdish politicians, including Hamo. The integration process is reportedly in its final stages, with some expecting the SDF to be dissolved soon.
The integration comes as Turkey advances a peace process with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) at home. The process, also described as being in its final stages, could pave the way for a rapprochement between Ankara and its longtime foe in Syria, the SDF.
Turkey says the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the SDF, is the Syrian branch of the PKK. The YPG denies the accusation.
Hamo is not the first person Ankara has removed from its wanted list after receiving a senior position in Syria’s new state institutions.
The Turkish government earlier removed Omer Muhammed Ciftci, a Turkish citizen accused of ties to al-Qaeda, from the list after he was appointed commander of the Syrian army’s 62nd Division earlier this month.
