Kurdish political parties came together in eastern Syria on Saturday in a historic meeting that represents a major shift for the region. The Kurdish groups are preparing for the integration of eastern Syria with the new government of Damascus.
Currently, eastern Syria is secured by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and a civilian government linked to the SDF, which is called the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).
The Kurdish media outlet Ruday said that “Kurdish political groups in Syria have agreed on a joint vision for a decentralized, democratic state that guarantees Kurdish rights and calls for a national dialogue to reshape the country’s future, according to the final statement issued by a conference held on Saturday in northeast Syria (Rojava).”
Rojava is the name of the Kurdish region in eastern Syria where Kurds live.
The statement published reports that the conference was “based on historical responsibility and in response to the requirements of the current stage, a joint Kurdish political vision has been formulated that expresses a collective will and its project for a just solution to the Kurdish issue in Syria as a decentralized democratic state.”
How everything began
It’s important to understand how this came about. When the Syrian civil war began, the Kurdish regions of eastern Syria were mostly abandoned by the Syrian government. Kurds were historically oppressed in Syria. However, they were not seen as a threat to Damascus.
As such, Damascus reduced its forces in the area and sent them to fight elsewhere in Syria. Into this vacuum in eastern Syria spread ISIS and other groups. Kurds responded by taking up arms and falling back on political groups that existed underground.
These included the PYD, a political group that is ideologically linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party. The YPG, an armed group linked to the PYD, began to defend parts of eastern Syria from ISIS. By 2015, the YPG had emerged victorious in battles for cities like Kobani, and they had also helped save Yazidi genocide victims fleeing Sinjar in Iraq. The US supported a new group called the SDF, which included YPG fighters.
When parts of eastern Syria stabilized due to the success of the SDF, people could think again about politics and governance. However, there was no agreement on the way forward. While the left-leaning Kurdish groups linked to the YPG and its various political organizations, such as PYD, had one vision, there were other Kurdish groups that preferred a different kind of politics. These included the ENKS (Kurdish National Council) and other Kurdish organizations.
The ENKS is linked to the ruling Kurdish party of northern Iraq, the Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP. The divisions in eastern Syria fall along lines that are larger than just eastern Syria. The KDP and PKK historically do not get along on issues in northern Iraq. Kurds are divided along political lines, like all people. As such, in eastern Syria, there was a lack of unity, and this was exacerbated by the war years and the decision by the rulers of AANES to essentially exclude ENKS and Kurds from groups that were centrist, right-leaning, or more conservative. While the SDF was doing amazing work fighting ISIS, the internal politics of Rojava looked more like a one-party state from 2015 to 2025.
Things began to change slowly over time. ISIS was mostly defeated in 2019. Turkey threatened to invade. The US said it would eventually withdraw. The AANES and SDF leadership understood they would need to deal with Damascus. When the Assad regime fell, they eventually reached out to Ahmed al-Sharaa and the new government. Shara’a had led HTS, the only other truly independent group in Syria besides the SDF.
Most of the Syrian rebel groups had long since been defeated or co-opted by Turkey or reconciled with the regime. In early March, SDF leader Mazloum Abdi flew to Damascus and met Shara’a. This historic meeting paved the way for integrating eastern Syria with the new Syrian government.
Unifying Kurdish parties in eastern Syria is important now as things move forward. Kurdistan Region of Iraq leader Nechirvan Barzani praised the conference in a post.
“Praise and appreciation to Mr. Mazloum Abdi, ENKS [Kurdish National Council], and all the brothers and sisters who worked on conducting the Kurdish Unity and Solidarity Conference in Syria. I congratulate everyone on the success of the conference, which is a source of great joy and has pleased the Kurdish people everywhere,” a statement from the presidency said.
The conference in eastern Syria brought together more than 400 Kurds to discuss the future. Rudaw notes that “the vision safeguards Kurdish ethnic rights, upholds international human rights principles and treaties, and promotes women’s rights and participation across political, social, and military spheres.”
The report added that “the conference’s final statement recommended its vision be adopted as a foundation for national dialogue among Kurdish political groups, the new administration in Damascus, and all Syrian forces. It said the goal is to create an inclusive Syria that respects the rights of all communities and strengthens the country’s role as a stabilizing force in the region.”
This kind of unity conference could have taken place years ago. It is important that it is happening now as Kurds begin to look at how best to integrate with Damascus and the new government. This doesn’t only affect Kurds. It will affect all the people east of the Euphrates who have been secured by the SDF and lived under AANES governance for most of the last decade. This includes Arab tribes, as well as Christians, Muslims, and others. Some of the people in this area chaffed under the AANES and SDF rule.
They were nonplussed by its ideology, which sometimes ran counter to some conservative cultures. However, the years of war against ISIS have made this less of a pressing matter. Now, as the US withdraws, the Syrian security forces will likely slowly integrate areas previously run by the SDF. Each case will need to build confidence. If the result is stability, then the current trend will have been successful.
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