Sharaa to meet Abdi in Damascus following SDF-government deal for northeast Syria

Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa will meet the chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Mazloum Abdi, to consolidate a ceasefire agreement agreed between the army and the Kurdish-led movement in northern and eastern areas of the country.

The meeting on Monday, which was postponed from Sunday due to weather conditions, follows a ceasefire agreement reached between the Syrian army and the SDF, which should end recent fighting and bring almost all of the country under direct government control.

The truce deal, as read by Al-Sharaa at the People’s Palace on Sunday, stipulated an end to the fighting and the integration of the Kurdish administration and its forces into the state.

Abdi likewise signed the agreement, despite not attending the meeting.

He instead announced his acceptance of the truce conditions during a televised address, stressing that the conflict had been "imposed" on the group and had been "planned" by several parties.

Kurdish media reported that Abdi had agreed to a full withdrawal from the regions of Deir az-Zour and Raqqa, coinciding with a departure of the SDF military east of the Euphrates river.

Al-Sharaa has reiterated that the government remains in line with the 10 March agreement, which called for the integration of all civil and military institutions into the Syrian state, including border crossings, airports, as well as oil and gas fields.

Also on Sunday, security sources confirmed that government forces had seized the Al-Omar oil field and the Conoco gas field in the oil-rich area of eastern Deir az-Zour, along the border with Iraq.

Fighting has no largely halted in the country’s northeast after days of clashes, after government forces captured the city of Tabqa and the strategic Euphrates Dam in Raqqa province.

According to Syrian state media SANA, however, three soldiers were killed and several others were injured on Monday in two separate attacks targeting government forces deploying to northeastern regions. The army had begun deploying to the Jazeera region after securing positions in the northern Raqqa and western Hassakeh countrysides.

Meanwhile, Syria’s interior ministry says it is following reports of "massacres" in Hassakeh at the hands of SDF fighters amid testimonies accusing Kurdish-led members of targeting residents celebrating the ceasefire. According to unverified reports from activists, the violence would have resulted in several deaths and injuries.