Syria extends ceasefire with Kurdish forces by 15 days

DAMASCUS — Syria on Saturday extended a truce with Kurdish forces to support the transfer of Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq, as tensions in the country's northeast continue, the Syrian defense authority said.

"The ceasefire across all sectors of Syrian army operations" has been extended by 15 days, starting at 11 pm on Saturday, according to a statement.

The decision was made in support of a United States-led operation to relocate Islamic State detainees from prisons previously run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the statement said.

The extension came as the Syrian army and the SDF traded accusations of ceasefire violations and amid preparations for renewed fighting, underscoring the fragility of recent de-escalation efforts after weeks of clashes in northeastern Syria.

Earlier on Saturday, the army's operations authority accused the SDF of bringing reinforcements from Kurdistan Workers' Party militias based in Iraq's Qandil Mountains into the northeastern province of Hasakah, warning that such movements threatened regional stability.

The SDF, for its part, accused Damascus of moving toward escalation despite the ceasefire. In a statement issued on Saturday evening, the SDF said Syrian forces were conducting systematic military preparations and logistical movements in Syria's Jazira region and around the town of Kobani.

It said its forces had come under two separate attacks earlier in the day in the region, describing the incidents as clear violations of the ceasefire.

Meanwhile, Syria's foreign affairs official Mohammad Taha al-Ahmad told state media that there had been no positive response from the SDF to the authority's proposals, accusing the group of repeatedly seeking truces to gain time.

The latest developments come as northeastern Syria remains on edge, with international efforts focused on preventing the collapse of the ceasefire, securing detention facilities holding Islamic State suspects, and averting a broader escalation that could further destabilize the region.

Tensions between the Syrian interim authorities and the SDF have recently intensified in the northeast, including areas near detention facilities holding Islamic State suspects, despite several ceasefire arrangements and internationally mediated talks.

The latest flare-ups followed a fragile agreement under which SDF units were to withdraw from areas west of the Euphrates River, allowing state institutions and security forces to return to key locations.

Xinhua