ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Delegates of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration in Northern and Eastern Syrian (NES) visited Deir ez-Zor in response to the demands of local leaders.
A week earlier, Arab tribal leaders in the eastern Syrian province had collectively demanded the release of their people from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) camps and called for the NES administration to provide the region with basic infrastructure needs.
On Thursday, a delegation led by NES co-chair Hamid al-Mihbash visited the Autonomous Administration’s Deir ez-Zor civil council and also met with Internal Security forces, the SDF’s Deir ez-Zor command, and powerful tribal leaders.
“The meeting was to listen to the people, their demands, and to open the space for their critique and observations concerning the performance of the civil council to evaluate the completed works on its part through the past years and standing on the popular suggestions for projects next year,” an NES Thursday statement read.
The visit was not spontaneous. On December 20, Arab tribal leaders in Deir ez-Zor demanded that the SDF, the force protecting NES territory, release women, children and tribal members from camps designated for individuals and families with alleged links to the Islamic State (ISIS). Thousands of women and children linked to ISIS members live in difficult conditions in camps such as the overcrowded al-Hol camp, located about three hours from Deir ez-Zor near the Iraq-Syria border.
The leaders also demanded that the NES provide better infrastructure and services to an area heavily damaged by the war against ISIS.
“What was destroyed through the nine years [of the Syrian Civil War] will not be brought back in just days and months. There are many levels of work, and demands even more, to which even states seem unable due to their size, but what has been done is a lot, but we won’t say it is enough,” Ghasan Youssif, co-chair of the Deir ez-Zor Civil Council, was quoted as saying.
In May 2019, mere months after the defeat of ISIS in Syria, Deir ez-Zor held more than three weeks of protests, demanding improved services and increased decision-making power for the Arab population, a majority in the area, in the Kurdish-led administration.
Since October 9, with the onset of the Turkish invasion of Kurdish-held Northern Syria, the Kurdish-led authorities have become distracted, and the possibility of fragmentation within the NES due to an Arab breakaway is on the table.
While Deir ez-Zor contains the majority of Syrian gas and oil fields, most of the province’s infrastructure has been destroyed. Despite its vast oil reserves, the province is suffering economically.
Prior to the Syrian Civil War, when President Bashar al- Assad was fully in control, the oil wealth of the area was used by the regime. Corruption was prevalent, leaving locals with little of their wealth. Now Kurdish-led authorities use the oil revenues, to pay salaries and fund projects. Not all the oil is used for Deir ez-Zor, sparking resentment among Arab locals who demand a bigger share of their own resources.
The NES, however, said it is willing to respond to all the demands outlined by the Arab tribal leaders.
Al-Mihbash told a delegation of locals in al-Shaitat and Hajin that there are “no complications” with regards to Deir ez-Zor IDPs leaving camps based on “smooth and legal measures.”
Ameena Ousi, co-chair of the NES, assured locals that her administration is doing everything in its power to serve Deir ez-Zor, especially regarding the provision of services in the health, agricultural, and education sectors.
