The rapid rollback of Kurdish-led forces is changing Sharaa’s Syria

President Ahmed al-Sharaa has made significant strides in his efforts to unify a deeply fractured Syria, reclaiming large swathes of territory in the north-east that has been under the control of a Kurdish-led militia alliance for more than a decade. What happens next is a test for a government trying to assert its authority over the entire country.

The victories of government forces in a lightning offensive against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) marked the biggest change of control in Syria since Islamist rebels overthrew Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, ending 13 years of civil war. Before this month’s push, nearly a third of Syria’s territory was controlled by the Kurds, who enjoyed American support after helping a US-led coalition defeat the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group last decade. There, they run an enclave with its own government and institutions, with the SDF as its military arm.

The offensive occurred amid stalled talks between Sharaa’s government and the SDF over the key issue of integrating its forces into the nation’s institutions. An agreement was signed in March, but the one-year deadline ended with little progress as the SDF remained reluctant to give up its autonomy. The militia alliance, analysts say, miscalculated in its negotiations with the government, apparently believing it had the support of its longtime ally.

But the US under President Donald Trump strongly supported Sharaa, who defended his vision of a united Syria under the control of Damascus. Trump hosted Sharaa, previously labeled a terrorist by the US because of his former links to al-Qaeda, at the White House last year, and lifted the damaging sanctions imposed on Syria during the Assad years. When Sharaa’s forces began their push, there was no apparent opposition from the US.

On Sunday, after the suffering was stunning loss of territory, the SDF agreed to a 14-point deal which reversed almost all the concessions it obtained from the government in earlier negotiations. Crucially, its members are expected to join the Syrian army and interior ministry as individuals – and not as separate units, as it has demanded – while control of oil and gas fields, crucial for Syria’s economic recovery, will be transferred to the government. SDF-run prisons and camps holding thousands of IS prisoners and family members are also under Damascus control.

The announcement came a few days after Sharaa issued a decree seen as an attempt to reach out to the Kurds, whose rights have been denied during five decades of Assad rule: it teaches Kurdish as a national language, grants Syrian nationality to the stateless Kurds, and declares Nowruz – the Persian new year – a national holiday.

However, the fight broke out again. Currently, the areas reclaimed by government forces are mostly Arab, where locals hold grudges against the SDF. But troops continue to move toward Kurdish-majority areas, raising the possibility of deadly clashes, and reportedly angered Washington. On Tuesday, Sharaa’s government suddenly announced a ceasefire, giving the SDF four days to present a detailed plan for reunifying the areas it controls in the state. This halted the movement of his army and prevented the escalation of violence, for the time being.

Since coming to power after the fall of the Assad regime, Sharaa has always vowed to protect Syria’s minorities. But the country has seen deadly outbreaks of sectarian violence. Last year, government forces were accused of atrocities after being sent to the Mediterranean coast, which is the center of Assad’s Alawite sect, and the majority of the southern Druze province of Suweida. The Kurds fear the same will happen to them, despite renewed guarantees offered by Sharaa.

For the Kurds, the defeats were a fatal blow to aspirations to preserve their autonomy, with the US position seen as a betrayal. Tom Barrack, the US special envoy, said that the “original purpose” of cooperation with the SDF, as the main anti-IS force in Syria, “has largely expired”, and that the “greatest opportunity for the Kurds in Syria” is in the transition under Sharaa, whose government is seen by Western countries as the best chance to guarantee the stability of Syria.

The dramatic changes empower Sharaa but are likely to reignite calls for her to decentralize authority, with critics saying key posts are limited to her allies. It could also show what he plans to do in other areas of the country, including the Druze-held areas, which are demanding autonomy.