SDF commander urges Damascus to halt attacks, resume dialogue
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), General Mazloum Abdi, on Tuesday called on the Syrian government to stop military operations and return to the negotiating table, amid escalating clashes and reported attacks on detention facilities holding Islamic State (ISIS) members and their families.
In statements to the Kurdish Hawar News Agency, Abdi urged the International Coalition to “assume its responsibilities in protecting detention facilities for ISIS members,” as fighting intensified in several parts of northeastern Syria.
“We call on the Syrian government to stop the attacks and return to the table of dialogue,” Abdi said.
He added, “We salute the resistance of civilians and fighters in all areas subjected to brutal attacks and systematic killing against the Kurds.”
According to Abdi, assaults have sharply increased on facilities holding ISIS fighters and their families in the town of al-Shaddadi and inside al-Hawl Camp, one of the largest displacement camps in Syria. He said the camp had been subjected since Monday evening to “violent attacks and attempts to storm it and seize control by force.”
Abdi stated that “the guards of al-Hawl Camp faced attacks by military columns, armored vehicles, and tanks, which forced them to withdraw.”
Al-Hawl Camp, located in the countryside of Hasakah, houses tens of thousands of people, including relatives of suspected ISIS members from Syria and abroad. The camp was guarded by the SDF under the administration of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), with support from the Global Coalition.
Abdi further said that Syrian government forces were continuing “intense attacks on the city of Hasakah, its countryside, and the city of Kobani,” noting that Damascus had not responded to any of the ceasefire initiatives proposed over the past two weeks.
“We have withdrawn to areas with a Kurdish majority, and their protection is a red line that we will not hesitate to defend,” he said.