ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States on Tuesday welcomed the extension of the ceasefire between Damascus and Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria, calling for a permanent truce and renewed negotiations to integrate the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into the Syrian state and expressing readiness to support the effort.
The four nations welcomed the 15-day extension of the ceasefire between the Syrian forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), calling on “all parties to strictly adhere to the ceasefire and to exercise their utmost restraint,” and urging “all external parties to join us in the pursuit of peace and the de-escalation of violence.”
The statement also called for the swift conclusion of a “permanent ceasefire” and for the resumption, “as soon as possible, of negotiations aimed at the peaceful and sustainable integration of North-East Syria [Rojava] into a unitary and sovereign state that effectively respects and protects the rights of all its citizens,” based on the 18 January 2026 agreement.
The Syrian Arab Army and affiliated armed groups in mid-January launched a large-scale offensive to seize territory held by the SDF in eastern Aleppo, Deir ez-Zor, and Raqqa, as well as areas near the Kurdish-majority Hasaka province, in eastern Rojava.
The SDF serves as the de facto military force in Rojava and is a key ally of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat the Islamic State (ISIS). They played a crucial role in ISIS’s territorial defeat in Syria in 2019. The areas seized by Syrian forces recently had previously been liberated from ISIS by the Kurdish-led forces and were held to prevent the group from re-emerging.
Damascus last week declared a ceasefire, with the Syrian defense ministry announcing on Saturday that it had been extended for an additional 15 days.
Earlier, on January 18, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced that Damascus and the SDF had reached a 14-point agreement to “immediately” halt the violence in Kurdish-held areas. The accord also mandates the withdrawal of SDF forces from key provinces, including Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, and the integration of SDF fighters - on an “individual” basis and following security vetting - into Syria’s defense and interior ministries.
France, Germany, the UK and US on Tuesday affirmed their “support for an inclusive political transition in Syria,” emphasizing that the stabilization of Rojava “through peaceful means constitutes a central priority for preventing a resurgence of terrorism and ensuring regional security.”
The four countries also expressed their “readiness to support and monitor” the implementation of agreements between Damascus and the SDF, which aim to integrate Rojava “into a unitary, inclusive, and sovereign state” through peaceful means.
The escalation in northern and northeastern Syria has sparked a wave of displacement of an estimated 100,000 civilians.
Rula Amin, spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for the Middle East and North Africa, told Rudaw on Monday that “more than 4,000 families are sheltering in collective centers in [the SDF-held] Hasaka [in eastern Rojava] alone,” while thousands more are staying with relatives or host communities.
Amid the mid-January Syrian offensive, the SDF also announced that they lost control over several facilities holding ISIS detainees, including the al-Shaddadi prison in southern Hasaka, with reports indicating that between 120 and 1,500 detainees may have escaped during the violence.
The Kurdish-led forces were also forced to withdraw from the notorious al-Hol camp in Hasaka, which houses individuals with alleged links to ISIS. Rojava officials last week confirmed to Rudaw that a total of 7,130 families - or 25,183 individuals - were held at al-Hol prior to the SDF’s withdrawal.
France, Germany, the UK and US on Tuesday underlined “the obligation of all parties to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure,” and “to ensure the safe and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance,” including in the Kurdish city of Kobane in northwest Syria, which Rojava officials have warned is currently under siege.
The four nations also stressed the “need to maintain and focus collective efforts on the fight against ISIS,” urging “all parties to avoid any security vacuum in and around ISIS detention centres” and calling for a meeting of the US-led anti-ISIS Coalition to address these concerns.
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