HASAKAH – After one week of heavy clashes between Kurdish forces of the Self-Administration and pro-regime troops in Syria’s northeastern Hasakah city, the conflicting sides today reached a ceasefire agreement. The truce was reached between Kurdish forces and pro-Assad forces after a Russian mediation.
This comes after the Kurdish forces captured large areas in Hasakah, including Gaweran and Nashwa Sharqiya districts beside a number of public institutions in the city.
Speaking to ARA News in Hasakah, Kurdish officer Alan Kousa said: “We have been fighting for nearly ten days. Our forces made remarkable gains. We captured several new areas such as Nashwa Sarqiya, Allailiya and the central prison of Hasakah, beside taking parts of the central market. The regime’s militias are now surrounded by our forces inside the Security Complex in the city.”
“We are now waiting to see whether the truce agreement would be effective to stop the fighting, that’s why we haven’t broken into their final stronghold,” the official said.
Clashes break out from time to time in Hasakah, causing mass displacements among civilians, who remain hopeful to return home someday and live in peace.
Dozens of houses have been exposed to heavy bombardment by the regime forces in Hasakah, while the affected civilians hope their losses would be compensated in someway.
Haval Rasho, member of the Kurdish 4th Division of Girespi, told ARA News: “Our forces have made a remarkable progress against the regime in Hasakah. However, since a ceasefire was reached we suspended our operations.
“We wish a great victory for our forces and the people of Hasakah against the tyrant regime. We are looking forward to seeing people returning to their homes safely.”
Reporting by: Qehreman Miste
Related report:
Russian-brokered ceasefire begins in Syrian city of Hasakah, by Raja Abdulrahim and Noam Raydan, Wall St. Journal, Aug
23, 2016
Kurds triumph in battle against Syrian regime
HASAKAH – The Syrian Kurds on Tuesday [August 22] took control of most of the city of Hasakah [northeast Syria] in a battle that lasted for seven days. Several negotiations took place to stop the fighting between the Syrian regime and the Kurds, but they did not succeed to stop the fighting until Tuesday, reaching a ceasefire agreement.
During seven days of clashes, regime jets carried out air strikes for three consecutive days and without air strikes the Syrian government forces were not able to resist Kurdish advances that took control of around 90 to 95 per cent of the city.
U.S.-led coalition jets prevented in the past few days Syrian regime jets from striking Kurdish positions. However, sounds of regime helicopters and unidentified air planes remained in the sky of Hasakah in northeastern Syria.
The agreement said that all the Syrian troops and affiliated militias had to withdraw from Hasakah city and that areas captured by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) would stay under their control. Most likely they will be replaced by civil police.
Speaking to ARA News, YPG fighter Abdulsalam Omer (20) said that only the security square is in the hands of the Syrian government and confirmed that many Arab fighters joined the Kurdish-led Asayish security force and the People’s Protection Units (YPG). “We joined to protect our honour, land and people,” he said.
The truce also stressed that both sides should release their prisoners, open roads that were closed because of clashes, and civil servants that were fired to be reinstated in their jobs.
“Yesterday night we have reached a ceasefire agreement,” Ismail Rasho, a YPG official told ARA News in Hasakah. “Only the security square is left, the rest of the city is liberated like Gweran and Nashwa districts.”
“There is not much left for the regime, only the municipality area,” he added.
The Kurdish forces were helped by the fact that the Syrian regime jets couldn’t strike the forces–that have been backed by US-led coalition jets in the fight against ISIS.
“From the beginning the regime jets carried out strikes for two or three days, but after that they stopped,” Rasho said.
Sheikh Salih Obeid, an official in the YPG military relations office, thanked the Americans for their indirect support. “I also thank President Obama,” he said.
Reporting by: Wladimir van Wilgenburg
Related report:
YPG official: Syrian regime is trying to satisfy Turkey by attacking Kurds, ARA News, Aug 22, 2016
QAMISHLI – Polat Can, the representative of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) to the coalition against ISIS, said on Sunday that the Syrian government is trying to send a message to Turkey. The YGP official said the ongoing attacks by the Assad regime against Kurds in Syria’s Hasakah “are aimed at compensating ISIS losses in front of the Kurdish forces and allies”.
“What the Syrian regime is trying to do is to create clashes with Kurds in Hasakah to compensate the ISIS loss of Manbij city,” Can said. The Kurdish top official said that Syrian regime also tries to satisfy Turkish government.
Speaking to ARA News, Kurdish analyst Barzan Isso suggested that the Syrian government is trying to use the Kurds to restore its relations with Turkey. “Kurds today are fighting a war which could thwart wars in future, so they will not negotiate on the military presence of regime in the region anymore,” he said.
“Without eradicating the regime politically and military from the [Kurdish] region, the regime would turn into a cancer that will be difficult to treat in the future,” Isso said. “The services and administrative institutions should stay to coordinate with the new federal system for northern Syria and Rojava,” he added.
The YPG on Sunday night gave Syrian regime fighters –that are surrounded by the Kurdish forces in Hasakah– an ultimatum to give up or fight to the end.
Background (two reports from PressTV):
Kurdish forces breach truce with government in Syria’s Hasakah
PressTV (Iran), Monday, Aug 22, 2016
Kurdish forces in the Syrian city of Hasakah have violated a ceasefire agreement they had struck with Syrian army forces hours earlier.
The Kurdish forces attacked the district of Nashwa in southeastern Hasakah early on Monday, according to Reuters.
According to Syria Now website, the Kurdish fighters set fire to governmental buildings in Hasakah on Monday. Reports also said the forces had earlier seized control of the Ghwairan neighborhood in the northeastern Syrian city.
The Syrian army and popular forces have been engaged in clashes with the Kurdish militants to thwart their acts of sabotage in Nashwa and Ghwairan since Sunday.
Even though both the Kurds and the Syrian army have been battling the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group, clashes erupted between them on Wednesday [August 17].
The Syrian forces and the Kurdish fighters agreed on a Russian-brokered ceasefire in Hasakah on August 22.
Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict. The UN no more provides an official death toll for Syria.
Syria troops, Kurds agree on Russia-brokered truce in Hasakah
PressTV, Sunday, Aug 21, 2016 (complete article)
Syrian forces and Kurdish fighters have agreed upon a Russia-brokered ceasefire in the north-eastern city of Hasakah.
The truce includes a “halt to all hostilities and the return to government forces of any positions seized by Kurdish fighters,” said a Syrian military source on Sunday.
Despite both parties battling the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, clashes erupted on Wednesday [August 17] between the U.S.-backed Kurds and troops loyal to the Syrian government.
According to the terms of the ceasefire, casualties from the fighting will be transferred to the close-by town of Qamishli, and further negotiations are also scheduled for Monday.
Seven army checkpoints, which were seized by Kurdish forces during the clashes, have been returned to the control of government forces, but three still remain in Kurdish control, according to local reports. However, following the announcement of the ceasefire, a Kurdish source was quoted by AFP as saying that the ceasefire has not been fully agreed upon yet. “No agreement has been reached on a ceasefire or the return of positions to the government,” he said.
Since the fighting erupted, large numbers of the city’s population have fled, while the rest of the people are dealing with water and power shortages.
On Saturday [August 21], a Russian delegation from Khmeimim airbase arrived in Qamishli to coordinate efforts for a ceasefire between the feuding forces.
Over the past few months, Syrian forces have made a series of significant gains against militants in the country, especially in and around the northern city of Aleppo.
Meanwhile, Syrian fighter jets and choppers carried out several airstrikes on militant held positions in Aleppo, which has been divided between government forces and militants since 2012. Syrian forces have been engaged in a major operation to liberate the militant-held parts of the city as well as the province with the same name.
Syrian troops also carried attacks on several terrorist positions held by the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (previously known as the al-Nusra Front) in the central Homs province, killing at least five militants and destroying several vehicles.
Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict. Back in 2014, the UN said it would no more update its official death toll for Syria because it could not verify the figures that it received from various sources.
