Kurds in Syria voice disillusionment and accuse the US of abandonment after a new deal with Damascus ends their hopes for autonomy.
QAMISHLI: Residents of the Kurdish Syrian city of Qamishli voiced disillusionment on Monday after a deal with Damascus struck a fatal blow to their long-held aspirations for autonomy.
Some accused the United States of abandoning them after their contributions in the war against the Islamic State group.
Under pressure from a government advance, Syrian Democratic Forces leader Mazloum Abdi said he agreed to a ceasefire deal formalising plans for Kurdish integration into the state to avoid “civil war”.
The deal stipulates the Kurds’ de facto autonomous administration immediately hand over two predominantly Arab provinces it controlled.
It also outlines the integration of the body’s civil institutions in its stronghold of Hasakeh.
US envoy Tom Barrack embraced the new deal as an “inflection point, where former adversaries embrace partnership”.
“I never felt like the Americans’ support was genuine,” said 40-year-old Kurdish activist Hevi Ahmed.
She likened Washington’s “dealings with people to mere real estate brokerage”.
“The agreement is a disappointment after years of hope that the Syrian constitution might contain a better future for the Kurds,” she added.
Aras Mohammed, a 34-year-old employee in the Kurdish administration, also expressed a “great sense of disappointment”.
He said Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa “imposes his vision of the state and constitution” with the new deal.
Mohammed said he had major concerns after past “agreements have been violated, bypassed or diluted”.
Ever since clashes erupted between Kurdish-led forces and Syrian government troops in Aleppo this month, Kurds have grown increasingly anxious.
As clashes extended to Raqa and Deir Ezzor provinces, thousands sought refuge in Kurdish-majority Qamishli.
A decree announced by Sharaa on Friday made Kurdish a national language and designated Nowruz an official holiday.
It also granted citizenship to Kurds previously deprived of it, though it did little to reassure the community.
Ahmed said she “fears reprisals from government-affiliated factions… similar to what happened in Sweida and the coast”.
She also expressed concern about the potential desecration of “images and graves of martyrs” killed battling IS.
After the SDF withdrew from parts of Raqa, people destroyed a statue honouring a woman fighter killed by IS.
“This is not the first time America abandons its allies, allies who fought hard and gave thousands of martyrs,” said jewellery shop owner Rafeh Ismail, 43.
Pharmacist Mohammed Issa, 25, asked that “the international coalition and the US do not abandon the Kurds”.
“Unfortunately, international decisions are determining our fate today,” he said.
