Mazloum Abdi discusses stability in NE Syria with US delegation

HASAKAH, Syria (North Press) – The Commander-in-Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Mazloum Abdi, discussed last weekend with a US delegation ways of enhancing stability in northeastern Syria.

Abdi and the commander of the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ), Newroz Ahmed, received a US delegation headed by Ethan Goldrich, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs.

The delegation included Ian Moss, the Deputy Coordinator for Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorist Detentions in the Bureau of Counterterrorism; Scott Turner, a Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Population, Migration and Refugees; Ilan Goldenberg, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs; Ian McCary, Deputy Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.

It also included Jake Alter, Country Director for Syria at Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and Major General Matthew W. McFarlane, Commander at the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR).

A source told North Press that the US delegation was on a visit to Turkey before coming to Syria.

Speaking with Abdi, the delegation stressed the necessity of the SDF promoting stability in northeastern Syria, the source said.

The two sides agreed on the need to secure the prisons detaining militants of the Islamic State Organization (ISIS).

The US delegation said they were in constant contact with the concerned countries to repatriate their nationals in the Hawl and Roj camps – which house thousands of families of ISIS militants.

Before their meeting with the SDF, the US delegation met with Ilham Ahmed, President of the Executive Committee of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), and Badran Chia Kurd, Co-chair of the Department of Foreign Relations of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), to discuss similar issues.

Reporting by Hoshang Hassan