Over the past few days, the cities of al-Hasakah and Qamishli have seen the entry of Internal Security forces affiliated with the Syrian government in areas that until recently had been under the full control of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
This field development came as part of implementation steps for the comprehensive ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF, reached under international sponsorship and announced on 30 January.
As al-Hasakah’s streets watched the passage of vehicles carrying personnel armed with light weapons, local opinion split between those optimistic about a long-awaited improvement in services and administration, and those wary that this shift could ignite at any moment, reviving scenes of military clashes witnessed in recent days in Raqqa and Deir Ezzor.
The new government presence at sensitive contact points places the SDF’s Internal Security forces (Asayish) before the challenge of direct daily coordination, keeping residents in a constant state of anticipation about how things will unfold on the ground.
Welcome, mixed with fear
In the “Souq al-Hal” wholesale market in al-Hasakah, “Abu Raed” (52 years old), a wholesaler, considers any agreement that reduces checkpoints a gain for citizens.
“Abu Raed” told Enab Baladi, “In al-Hasakah, during the days of the former regime, we lived like isolated islands. A trader would struggle to move goods from the security square to other neighborhoods, and the entry of the Syrian government’s Internal Security forces under an official agreement with international sponsorship could end the extortion and complications at the mutual checkpoints. I hope we do not repeat the experience of the old security squares. We welcome this agreement if it truly leads to reopening roads permanently and revitalizing commercial activity that has been suffocated by military tension.”
But “Abu Raed” did not hide his concern, saying, “Every time we see rapprochement, we fear a setback. Our problem is that any individual friction between a government member and an Asayish member could turn the city into a battlefield. There is welcome for the agreement, but anxiety about a return to military confrontation lives in all of us; weapons are widespread, and emotions are charged.”
“A double-edged sword”
For Sara (30 years old), an activist in civil society organizations, the agreement is “a double-edged sword.”
Sara believes a more effective Syrian government presence in Qamishli and al-Hasakah could make it easier for residents to obtain official documents, passports, and register property contracts without the exhausting trip to Damascus or the risks of the road.
Sara told Enab Baladi that the entry of two batches of Internal Security forces means greater activation of government offices, which helps civilians handle legal matters. She added that the agreement’s international sponsorship “gives us a kind of hope that there are international guarantees against continued security violations.”
However, she voiced concern about the specific overlap between the two forces (the government and Asayish), asking, “How will authority be separated? We fear a return of security pursuits by Asayish through new methods under the cover of this agreement. We also worry that this presence could be a prelude to a struggle for influence that ultimately leads to a military clash, with civilians paying the price, as happened in the battles of Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafieh in Aleppo.”
Fragile promises
In the al-Aziziyah neighborhood, Mahmoud (64 years old) sits in front of his home, watching passersby with eyes seasoned by political shifts in Syria’s Jazira region.
For Mahmoud, the entry of government-affiliated forces is not so much new as it is a repetition of earlier scenarios elsewhere (he points to Aleppo) that did not bring lasting stability.
Mahmoud told Enab Baladi, “We welcome the agreement if it will protect our homes from shelling and destruction. We are people of this land, and we want to see the government and the SDF reach an understanding instead of fighting. But history teaches us that these agreements are as fragile as window glass at the moment of an explosion. The entry of two batches with their weapons into the heart of the cities is like putting gunpowder next to fire. International sponsorship may keep things in check for a while, but what if they disagree again?”
He added, “Our anxiety comes from the fact that al-Hasakah cannot endure another round of fighting. We want an agreement that guarantees security, not one that brings armed men into our narrow streets. We hope this time will be different, but we sleep with our eyes open, in case a stray bullet ends this cautious calm.”
The latest agreement faces challenges, foremost among them the ability to draw clear boundaries of authority between the Syrian government’s Internal Security forces and the SDF’s Asayish. Geographic overlap in al-Hasakah and Qamishli makes it difficult to avoid daily friction, especially in vital areas such as markets and administrative centers.
For residents, the most terrifying possibility remains military confrontation. Many have come to associate any new security movement with the likelihood of a broader clash that may not end with one side withdrawing in favor of the other.
Waiting dominates the scene
The scene in al-Hasakah and Qamishli remains suspended between residents’ desire to end administrative and security fragmentation, and their fear that this agreement may be merely a “temporary truce” to rearrange military cards.
With government forces entering the two cities and beginning to deploy, eyes remain fixed on contact points, awaiting whether international sponsorship will succeed in turning the agreement into lasting stability, or whether al-Hasakah will remain a “powder keg” awaiting a spark.
Two convoys of Internal Security forces affiliated with the Syrian government entered, one after the other, over the past two days (2 and 3 February) into al-Hasakah and Qamishli, implementing the agreement announced between the Syrian government and the SDF on 30 January. This came after military confrontations that ended SDF control over Raqqa governorate and the countryside of Deir Ezzor and al-Hasakah, while parts of the latter remain in SDF hands amid both sides’ military build-up along contact lines.
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