ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Damascus-affiliated head of security in Afrin told Rudaw that the Syrian general security forces have been deployed in the Kurdish-majority city to safeguard civilians and facilitate the return of displaced persons. Suraqa Abu Ahmed added that the cases of Kurdish prisoners in Aleppo jails are currently under review, with plans to release those wrongly detained.
The Damascus-affiliated general security forces “began preserving the security situation in Afrin two months ago” to “maintain security and safeguard civilians,” Abu Ahmed said in an interview last week.
He reaffirmed the Damascus leadership’s “commitment to ensuring the safety and security” of civilians in Afrin, urging local support in the effort. He emphasized the right of the Afrin locals’ right to join Syria’s defense and interior ministry forces “like any other Syrian citizen.”
In 2018, Turkey and its allied Syrian militias seized control of Afrin, forcing hundreds of thousands of Kurds to flee. International organizations have recorded numerous human rights violations against Afrin’s Kurdish population, including killings, kidnappings, looting of agricultural crops, destruction of olive trees, and the imposing of taxes on farmers.
Abu Ahmed urged victims of these violations in Afrin to “resort to the judiciary to reclaim their rights, possessions and properties,” asserting that “we are working on facilitating the return of displaced persons to Afrin” and “on maintaining security in those regions.” He stressed that “when peace and security prevail, [displaced] people will return to their regions.”
The Damascus-affiliated head of security in Afrin additionally pointed to hindrances delaying the return of displaced persons to the Kurdish-majority city. He stated that those “whose homes are habitable are returning,” however “those whose houses require rehabilitation or are destroyed, are working on finding a solution” to allow their return.
Abu Ahmed also addressed the issue of Kurdish prisoners in Aleppo’s al-Ra’ei and Afrin jails, stating that their cases “will be reviewed and we will work on the release of all of them,” emphasizing that no political prisoners will be jailed, “only those with criminal records.”
Commenting on the security situation at the predominantly Kurdish quarters of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh north of Aleppo, Abu Ahmed stated, “We are working to implement the articles of the [landmark] agreement” between Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) chief Mazloum Abdi, “however the process is not simple.”
In early March, Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF chief Mazloum Abdi signed a landmark agreement to “integrate all civil and military institutions in northeast Syria [Rojava] under the administration of the Syrian state, including border crossings, the [Qamishli International] Airport, and oil and gas fields,” read a statement by the Syrian Presidency.
Abu Ahmed confirmed that the committees representing both Damascus and SDF leaderships have been established to ensure the implementation of the accord’s articles.
Of note, a few days after the interview with Abu Ahmed was filmed, the SDF and the new leadership in Damascus struck another agreement on Tuesday to exchange “all prisoners.”
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Tuesday reported that the deal entails “the release of 170 SDF prisoners and a number of bodies of martyrs,” in addition to “around 400 detainees and bodies of members of the government’s security forces and [allied] factions.”
The SDF and Damascus additionally agreed to keep SDF-affiliated internal security forces (Asayish) in Aleppo's predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods, namely the Ashrafiyeh and Sheikh Maqsood neighborhoods.