An agreement has been reached between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Monday that involves the exchange of military and civilian detainees held by the Kurdish-led group.
The deal will apply to the Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh areas of Aleppo, which are controlled by the SDF, a source told The New Arab’s Arabic sister outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
The move comes following a prisoner exchange that took place a few days ago involving the release of the bodies of fighters and detainees between the SDF and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), after intense battles in recent weeks in the Tishrin Dam and Qarah Qozak Bridge areas in the eastern Aleppo countryside.
Under that exchange, the SDF received 40 bodies that had been held by the SNA, in return for handing over 25 detainees, including four Turkish fighters, as part of a broader agreement that includes a ceasefire in those areas.
The SNA are a group of rebel forces that are funded by Turkey and used to fight against the SDF, which is controlled by the Syrian wing of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), considered by Turkey and the US to be a terrorist organisation. While the SNA are allied to the Syrian government, they are operationally controlled by Turkey.
The Syrian government, which is closely allied with Turkey, came to a separate deal with the SDF last month relating to the handover of territory the US-backed militia holds and the eventual integration of its fighting forces into the Syrian armed forces.Â
It is noted that these developments come as part of de-escalation efforts and understandings between the various parties, amid ongoing tensions in northern Syria.
This comes as US Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Representative Joe Wilson, sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging for the lifting of outdated US sanctions on Syria.
The US introduced a raft of sanctions, most notably the Caesar Act, to punish the Assad regime and any country, entity or person who did business with it due to its vast human rights abuses and war crimes. However, with Assad gone, the sanctions are still in place and are now harming the ability of Syria’s new government and its allies to rebuild the country.Â
Taking to social media, Warren called for the Trump administration to give Syria “a fighting chance” by lifting sanctions.
“@RepJoeWilson and I sent a bipartisan letter urging the Trump Admin to change outdated Syria sanctions to give the people a fighting chance after Assad’s brutal rule and prevent instability in the region,” she wrote on X.
“The U.S. must act before it’s too late,” she added.Â
