The Women’s Protection Units (YPJ), affiliated with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), pledged to continue fighting despite the agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF.
YPJ spokesperson Rukhsan Mohammed told the British newspaper The Telegraph in remarks published today, Tuesday, 3 February, that “the struggle of the Women’s Protection Units goes beyond a conflict over land,” describing it as part of a broader battle for Kurdish self rule and women’s rights.
Speaking in an interview conducted in Qamishli (northeastern Syria), Mohammed asked, “As a woman, why did I take up a weapon?” She answered, “Because I see my society, my independence, and my identity under threat. I may have a father and brothers, but I have to protect myself. No one can do that on my behalf.”
Mohammed said her forces were ready for war if it was imposed on them and to defend their people, while expressing readiness for peace if the agreement with the Syrian government secures protection for the SDF and the Kurdish people.
She added that the “deal” (the agreement with the government) should have included Kurdish factions retaining a degree of autonomy, as a counterweight to “potential violations by government loyal forces.”
Mohammed noted that “Damascus and the Kurds had different interpretations of an agreement signed under pressure from Washington,” according to her.
She also said her forces would continue to exist as an independent armed group within Kurdish areas.
“Our leaders and soldiers played the biggest role in the war against the Islamic State,” she said, adding that they also fought “al-Nusra Front” on multiple fronts. “So we cannot accept an armed force without women.”
Government is an “existential threat”
Mohammed said Syria’s transitional president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, first entered Syria as a commander in the “al-Nusra Front,” an al-Qaeda affiliate, and clashed with the YPJ at the start of Syria’s 14-year war, according to her account.
She described the Syrian government’s forces as an “existential threat” to Kurdish women, who, she said, did not only build an all female fighting force, but also worked to establish unique political institutions and civil society across northern Syria.
Mohammed described the relationship between the SDF and the United States as purely tactical, saying her forces were not preoccupied with when or how US forces might withdraw. She accused the US government of not coming to fight the Islamic State.
She added that regardless of whether the ceasefire holds after the time it takes the United States to complete transfers of detainees, the YPJ would keep control of its armored vehicles and heavy weapons.
Security measures in al-Hasakah and Qamishli
The cities of al-Hasakah and Qamishli (both in northeastern Syria) saw rapid security developments today, Tuesday, 3 February, alongside an SDF-imposed full curfew, amid reports of new administrative and security arrangements to merge local forces into the staffing structure of Syria’s Interior Ministry.
Enab Baladi’s correspondent said Qamishli entered a “state of complete paralysis” after the SDF announced a full curfew over loudspeakers, warning that any movement in the streets would be met with “direct targeting.”
Field measures included deploying snipers at strategic points, most notably the “water tower” and rooftops of high buildings in the Tay and Zunoud neighborhoods, in addition to the “tower building” in the city center and Akash Hospital overlooking the airport area.
The correspondent also reported a widespread internet outage, including satellite internet systems and the local “Arcel” network, cutting communications inside the city and with the outside world.
In al-Hasakah, the SDF also disrupted services and prevented bakeries from operating in the Ghuwayran neighborhood, alongside electricity cuts to wide areas since Monday evening.
Units from Syria’s Interior Ministry began entering al-Hasakah city on Monday, 2 February, in implementation of the agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF. The Interior Ministry said its forces’ entry was a step toward launching the implementation phase of the agreement and assuming full security responsibilities.
Agreement between the government and the SDF
The Syrian government and the SDF announced a new agreement that includes a comprehensive ceasefire between the two sides, along with an understanding on a phased merger of military and administrative forces.
According to the joint text published by both sides on 30 January, the agreement includes the withdrawal of forces from contact lines and the entry of Interior Ministry security forces into the centers of al-Hasakah and Qamishli to bolster stability and begin integrating security forces in the area.
Militarily, the parties agreed to form a division comprising three SDF brigades, and to form a brigade for the Kobani Forces (Ain al-Arab/Kobani, northern Aleppo countryside, northern Syria) within a division affiliated with Aleppo Governorate.
The agreement also provides for integrating the institutions of the Autonomous Administration (the SDF’s governing arm) into Syrian state institutions, while retaining civil employees in their posts.
It also noted the settlement of the Kurdish community’s civil and educational rights and guarantees for the return of displaced people to their areas.
According to the joint statement, the agreement’s goal is to unify Syrian territory, enforce the rule of law, and achieve full integration in the region by strengthening cooperation among the concerned parties and unifying efforts to rebuild the country.
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