Syria's defence ministry and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced a four-day ceasefire in northeast Syria on Tuesday, following new understandings between Damascus and the SDF on the future of areas under Kurdish control.
Under the terms of the agreement, the SDF will be given four days to present a detailed plan for how areas under its control will be integrated into the Syrian state, the Syrian news website Enab Baladi reported.
Government forces, however, will not enter the city centres of Hassakeh and Qamishli or Kurdish-majority villages in the northeastern province of Hassakeh, an SDF stronghold.
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi will be able to choose a deputy defence minister and a governor for Hassakeh province under the new agreement, as well as representatives in Syria's parliament.
All SDF forces will be integrated into the Syrian government's military and security, while the government side also pledged to implement Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa's decree on Kurdish cultural, linguistic, and citizenship rights.
The SDF announced in a statement the "full commitment of our forces to the ceasefire that was agreed upon with the government in Damascus", saying it would not undertake any military action "unless our forces are subjected to any attacks in the future".
On the ground in Hassakeh province and around the Kurdish-majority town of Kobane in northern Syria, The New Arab's sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported a "cautious calm" on Wednesday with field sources in Hassakeh saying that large-scale military operations had stopped as the ceasefire came into effect.
The announcement of the new deal came after the Syrian government sent reinforcements to Hassakeh province, and the SDF withdrew from the Al-Hol camp, which houses thousands of people with suspected IS links, including foreign women and children.
The SDF once controlled vast areas of north and east Syria, which it seized fighting IS with support from a US-led international coalition.
But they have now withdrawn from Arab-majority Raqqa and Deir al-Zour provinces after fighting with government forces, which began in Aleppo earlier this month.
The conflict began after continued stalling of an agreement signed last March to integrate the SDF into Syrian state institutions.
An AFP correspondent saw major military reinforcements moving towards Hasakeh province, while a military official said his tank convoy had "assault and defensive vehicles behind us for support".
The sources who spoke to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed said that there were limited violations of the ceasefire overnight as the reinforcements arrived.
Rebels led by current Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa toppled longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad in 2024. The new authorities are seeking to extend state control across Syria, resetting international ties, including with the United States, now a key ally.
US President Donald Trump backed Sharaa as a "tough guy" on Tuesday, adding" "But you're not gonna put a choir boy in there and get the job done."
He also said that he "liked" the Kurds but added that they had received "huge sums of money" and oil, and acted "more for themselves" than for the US.
'Expired' SDF
US envoy Tom Barrack said earlier "the original purpose of the SDF as the primary anti-ISIS force on the ground has largely expired, as Damascus is now both willing and positioned to take over security responsibilities, including control of ISIS detention facilities and camps".
In Hassakeh city earlier Tuesday, an AFP correspondent saw Kurdish residents including women and the elderly, bearing weapons in support of the SDF, which patrolled and manned checkpoints. Most of the city's residents are Arab however.
Fighter Shahine Baz told AFP: "We promise our people to protect them until the end."
In northeast Syria's Qamishli, Hasina Hammo, 55, holding a Kalashnikov, said "we will not surrender".
Earlier Tuesday, the SDF said its forces "were compelled to withdraw from Al-Hol camp and redeploy" near north Syria cities "that are facing increasing risks and threats".
Northeast Syria's Kurdish-administered camps and prisons hold tens of thousands of people, many with alleged or perceived IS links, nearly seven years after the group's territorial defeat. Al-Hol is the largest camp.
The defence ministry said it was ready to take responsibility for Al-Hol camp "and all IS prisoners".
AFP contributed to this report.