Syria, Kurdish-led SDF swap 600 prisoners

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces exchanged 600 prisoners on Thursday as part of a reciprocal deal between the two sides.

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) chief Mazloum Abdi previously revealed that nearly 1,100 “civilian and military” detainees from northeast Syria (Rojava) remain in Damascus’ custody.

Thursday’s exchange - 300 detainees from Damascus and an equal number from the SDF - marked the third phase of such swaps. In the two previous exchanges, 100 and seven prisoners were released under a landmark January agreement.

The exchange follows the January 29 “comprehensive agreement” signed between the SDF and Syria’s transitional government, allowing government forces to enter the Kurdish-majority cities of Hasaka and Qamishli in Rojava.

The agreement also called for the formation of three army brigades from SDF fighters to be integrated into the Syrian state, as well as the gradual incorporation of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES) into state institutions.

The January 29 accord came after weeks of intense fighting during a Damascus-led offensive aimed at recapturing territory previously held by the SDF in northern and northeastern Syria.

Although this marks the third phase of the prisoner exchange, most of the released SDF detainees are Arab citizens from Raqqa and Deir Ezzor provinces, sparking protests among families of Kurdish fighters still in detention.

“I said it was Eid [al-Fitr] and wished for the release of my son, but he was not among them,” a distraught mother told Rudaw while taking part in a protest on Thursday afternoon, alongside other families whose relatives were not included in the exchange.

The SDF, the de facto military force in Rojava and a key partner in the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), had maintained control over these areas after liberating them from ISIS.

The Syrian offensive led to the SDF’s gradual withdrawal from territories in eastern Aleppo, Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and the predominantly Kurdish Hasaka province.

Since the agreement, negotiations between the Kurdish-led forces and the interim government in Damascus have continued to address unresolved issues, including detainees and missing persons—an issue SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi recently described as “central.”

In a related development, Sipan Hemo, a senior SDF commander, has been appointed deputy defense minister for Syria’s eastern region, according to Damascus-run media reports on Tuesday.

YPJ prisoners

The Women’s Defense Units (YPJ), an all-female force within the SDF, have demanded the release of several of their fighters whose names were not included in the exchange lists.

The Syrian government has agreed to the request and will release 30 YPG fighters, Ahmad Hilali, spokesperson for the committee overseeing the January 29 agreement, confirmed to Rudaw.

“The YPG fighters will be transferred to Hasaka in a private vehicle tonight or tomorrow,” Hilali said.