SDF’s Mazloum Abdi receives Coalition’s commander, PUK’s leader
HASAKAH, Syria (North Press) – Commander in Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazloum Abdi received on Tuesday US Commander of Combined Joint Task Force–Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) Matthew W. McFarlane, and Head of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Bafel Talabani in Hasakah city, northeast Syria.
The delegation included Newroz Ahmad and Mahmoud Barkhdan, members of the SDF’s General Command, and Badran Chia Kurd, co-chair of the Foreign Relations Department of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
The visit follows the resumption of joint patrols by the SDF and the US-led Global Coalition which were suspended by the SDF on the background of the recent military escalation by Turkish forces against the region.
The discussions focused on the threat posed by the Islamic State (ISIS) and its sleeper cells.
The visit is the first by Bafel Talabani to northeast Syria since assuming office of the party.
Abdi and Talabani held talks on the necessity of relations between the SDF and the AANES with Kurdistan Regional Government and Kurdish parties. Intra- Kurdish rapprochement in northeast Syria known otherwise as Rojava were also discussed.