Syrian government forces and Kurdish-led fighters clashed in northeastern Syria, a day after a ceasefire and integration deal was announced between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, according to the Associated Press. The renewed fighting came alongside reports that detainees held at prisons in the region had escaped, turning attention to a fragile agreement involving partners of the United States.
The clashes followed “new outbreaks of clashes” on Monday, when the Syrian Democratic Forces issued a statement urging recruitment. The SDF called for “all of our youth” to “join the ranks of the resistance,” framing the message around its 2014 experience in Kobani and warning that cities would be targeted in response to threats it associated with Turkey and Islamic State.
In the statement, the SDF said that “Just as our comrades in 2014 forged a historic resistance in Kobani and turned it into a graveyard for (the Islamic State group) … today we affirm with the same resolve that we will turn our cities … into a graveyard for the new (IS)-minded people who are directed by Turkey.” The wording linked the current standoff to how the SDF described its past campaign against the group.
Earlier Monday, Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters clashed around two prisons holding Islamic State group members in Syria’s northeast, the AP reported. In one set of fighting tied to Shaddadeh, the Kurdish-led force said several of its fighters were killed and over a dozen others wounded, while also alleging the situation around detainees was deteriorating.
The timing of the fighting raised questions about ceasefire talks, the AP said. It reported that SDF chief commander Mazloum Abdi was said to be in Damascus to discuss a ceasefire deal reached Sunday, but that Abdi issued no statement about the meeting.
On the Shaddadi Prison breakouts, the Syrian army said some detainees at the Shaddadeh prison were able to flee amid chaos and that a curfew was imposed because of the breakout, while search operations continued. The army and the SDF traded accusations over the release of the detainees, with the Islamic State group confirming in a statement that it lost control over the prison, the AP reported.
The AP said Shaddadeh’s prison is about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the border with Iraq. It also reported that the U.S. had a role in the environment around the prisons, with an AP reporter seeing a U.S. convoy entering the prison area “apparently to mediate between the two sides,” noting that Washington has good relations with both.
The AP also reported reported communications involving interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa. It said Sharaa’s office reported that he spoke by telephone with U.S. President Donald Trump, affirming “the importance of preserving the unity and independence of Syrian territory” and “the need to guarantee the rights and protection of the Kurdish people,” while agreeing to continue cooperating in the fight against IS.
Alongside the clashes and breakouts, the Syrian government earlier warned the SDF not to frame detainees through terrorism-related rhetoric for leverage. A government statement carried on state media read: “The government warns the SDF’s command not to facilitate the fleeing of Daesh detainees or opening prisons as a revenge measure or for political pressure,” the AP reported, using “Daesh,” an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.
Turkey also weighed in, warning the SDF not to delay implementation with Damascus. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, “Procrastination, resistance, and playing for time by hiding behind various excuses will benefit no one,” and that “The requirements of the ceasefire and full integration agreement must be fulfilled without delay,” according to the AP. He also warned against miscalculation as the deadline for cooperation approached.
While the Islamic State group no longer controls territory in Iraq and Syria as it did at its peak—having been defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria two years later—the AP said its sleeper cells still carry out deadly attacks in both countries. The AP further reported that Turkey considers the SDF a terrorist group because of ties it associates with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has carried out a long-running insurgency in Turkey.