EUAA report details shifts in Kurdish areas, military service in Syria
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) highlighted on Monday major military, political and security changes in northeast Syria between Oct. 1, 2025 and March 25, 2026, focusing on military service, the situation of Kurds, and developments in areas formerly controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
In a fresh report, the EUAA said that the SDF’s territorial control shrank significantly after clashes with forces of Syria’s transitional government in January 2026. Areas once held across Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Aleppo governorates were largely lost, leaving SDF influence concentrated around the cities of Qamishli, Hasakah and Kobani near the Turkish border.
The EUAA documented reports from late 2025 indicating that SDF authorities intensified compulsory recruitment campaigns under what they termed “self-defense duty,” particularly in Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah.
Human rights groups cited in the report said hundreds of young men were detained at checkpoints and during raids and transferred to recruitment centers. Allegations also included the recruitment of minors, which the SDF publicly denied, describing the actions as routine security checks.
At the same time, Syria’s transitional government formally ended mandatory conscription in December 2024, making military service voluntary except during a declared national emergency. Throughout 2025, authorities launched campaigns encouraging enlistment, including outreach to Kurds and other minorities, though no official figures were released.
A key development came with a series of agreements between Damascus and the SDF. A March 2025 accord laid the groundwork for integration, followed by a ceasefire and “full integration” agreement on Jan. 18, 2026 and a further deal on Jan. 30 establishing joint military formations and allowing government forces limited entry into Hasakah and Qamishli to oversee state institutions.
The report also noted to mixed conditions for Kurds in government-controlled areas. While sources cited by EUAA indicated that many Kurds continued daily life without systematic discrimination, there were reports of questioning, temporary detentions and harassment of travelers from the northeast, particularly during periods of tension between Damascus and the SDF.
Security conditions during the January clashes were marked by allegations of abuses by both sides, including extrajudicial killings, the desecration of bodies and attacks affecting civilians, according to international rights organizations referenced in the report.