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SDF Chief Says PKK Disarmament Call ‘Not Related to Us in Syria’

Commander of Syrian Kurdish-led forces Mazloum Abdi, attends an interview with Reuters in Hasakah, Syria December 19, 2024. (Reuters)
Commander of Syrian Kurdish-led forces Mazloum Abdi, attends an interview with Reuters in Hasakah, Syria December 19, 2024. (Reuters)
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SDF Chief Says PKK Disarmament Call ‘Not Related to Us in Syria’

Commander of Syrian Kurdish-led forces Mazloum Abdi, attends an interview with Reuters in Hasakah, Syria December 19, 2024. (Reuters)
Commander of Syrian Kurdish-led forces Mazloum Abdi, attends an interview with Reuters in Hasakah, Syria December 19, 2024. (Reuters)

The commander of the Kurdish-led forces that control northeastern Syria said that a call by the leader of the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Türkiye for the PKK to dissolve did not apply to the group he leads.

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander Mazloum Abdi said he welcomed the historic call by Abdullah Ocalan for the PKK to drop its decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state, which he said would have positive consequences in the region.

But Abdi said the long-imprisoned Ocalan's announcement on Thursday applied only to the PKK and was "not related to us in Syria".

Abdi's comment signaled Ocalan's announcement would have no immediate impact on the SDF despite the affiliation of Syria’s main Kurdish groups at the core of the SDF - the People's Protection Units (YPG) - to the PKK.

Türkiye says the YPG is indistinguishable from the PKK and has along with Turkish-aligned Syrian armed factions battled the group.

"If there is peace in Türkiye, that means there is no excuse to keep attacking us here in Syria," Abdi said.

Abdi's group established control over Kurdish areas of northern Syria after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011 and later became a major US partner in the fight against ISIS, further expanding the area under its control.

The SDF had little conflict with the Syrian army under then-President Bashar al-Assad. Now, the SDF faces calls by the new Damascus administration that ousted Assad in December to merge into newly-minted state security forces.

Türkiye is one of the new Syrian administration's main supporters.

Abdi has expressed a willingness for his forces to be part of the new defense ministry, but said they should join as a bloc rather than individuals, an idea rejected by the new government.

Neither the SDF nor the Kurdish-led administration was invited to a national dialogue conference convened in Damascus on Feb. 25. The Kurdish-led administration said the conference did not represent Syrians.

Abdi said Syrian Kurdish authorities would be organizing their own local dialogue on the future of the northeastern region. 

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Arab World

Lebanon State Media Reports Israeli Strikes after Conditional Truce Announcement

This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjayoun shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the village of Kfar Tibnit on June 3, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjayoun shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the village of Kfar Tibnit on June 3, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Lebanon State Media Reports Israeli Strikes after Conditional Truce Announcement

This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjayoun shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the village of Kfar Tibnit on June 3, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjayoun shows smoke rising from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the village of Kfar Tibnit on June 3, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Lebanese official media reported Israeli strikes on the country's south on Thursday morning, hours after an announcement that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to implement a conditional ceasefire following talks in Washington.

The state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported Israeli drone strikes along roads at several south Lebanon locations, saying at least one caused casualties.

Israel and Lebanon agreed Wednesday to implement a ceasefire but said it would require a "complete cessation" of fire by Iran-backed Hezbollah, according to a joint statement after US-led talks in Washington.

Arab World

Israel Far-right Minister Slams Ceasefire with Lebanon as 'Serious Mistake'

A photograph shows the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in the Burj al-Chamali area near the southern city of Tyre, on June 2, 2026. (Photo by Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
A photograph shows the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in the Burj al-Chamali area near the southern city of Tyre, on June 2, 2026. (Photo by Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
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Israel Far-right Minister Slams Ceasefire with Lebanon as 'Serious Mistake'

A photograph shows the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in the Burj al-Chamali area near the southern city of Tyre, on June 2, 2026. (Photo by Kawnat HAJU / AFP)
A photograph shows the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in the Burj al-Chamali area near the southern city of Tyre, on June 2, 2026. (Photo by Kawnat HAJU / AFP)

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir criticized on Thursday a ceasefire deal with Lebanon brokered by Washington, calling it a "serious mistake".

"The ceasefire with Lebanon is a serious mistake and the pipe dreams of advisers are dragging the prime minister (Benjamin Netanyahu) to wrong decisions," the minister wrote on X.

Israel and Lebanon agreed Wednesday to implement a ceasefire but said it would require a "complete cessation" of fire by Iran-backed Hezbollah, according to a joint statement after US-led talks in Washington, said AFP.

Arab World

Lebanon’s Shiite Duo Drops Israeli Withdrawal Demand in Ceasefire Talks

The Lebanese delegation participating in the Washington talks on Tuesday (Reuters) 
The Lebanese delegation participating in the Washington talks on Tuesday (Reuters) 
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Lebanon’s Shiite Duo Drops Israeli Withdrawal Demand in Ceasefire Talks

The Lebanese delegation participating in the Washington talks on Tuesday (Reuters) 
The Lebanese delegation participating in the Washington talks on Tuesday (Reuters) 

Recent statements by Lebanon’s Shiite duo - the Amal Movement and Hezbollah - indicate a tacit acceptance that Israeli forces could remain in Lebanese territory during an anticipated ceasefire phase.

This marks a shift from their previous insistence that any truce be accompanied by an Israeli withdrawal, the return of displaced residents to their villages, and the reconstruction of areas devastated by the war with Israel since 2023.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday blamed Hezbollah for the latest escalation, telling CNBC that it was being driven by Hezbollah rather than Israel and that his government remained committed to the ceasefire.

He also said that US President Donald Trump shares his objective of stripping Hezbollah of its arsenal and turning Lebanon into a demilitarized state.

A Lebanese source involved in ongoing contacts between Beirut and Washington said the demands of the Shiite duo, represented in negotiations by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, no longer focus on Israeli withdrawal or reconstruction.

Instead, the source said, their position is now limited to securing a ceasefire across land, sea and air, along with an end to the demolition and bulldozing operations carried out by Israeli forces in occupied Lebanese territory.

However, sources familiar with the duo’s position told Asharq Al-Awsat that the immediate objective is achieving a ceasefire in all its dimensions, stressing that subsequent steps — including an Israeli withdrawal, reconstruction efforts, and the deployment of the Lebanese Army to areas vacated by Israeli forces in southern Lebanon — would follow once a truce is in place.

Lebanese and Israeli diplomats held a second day of direct talks in Washington on Wednesday, the fourth such round since the outbreak of the war on March 2. The discussions coincided with an Israeli military escalation and intensified Lebanese contacts with Washington aimed at pressing Israel to implement a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon that would also apply to Hezbollah.

On Monday evening, Trump announced that a de-escalation arrangement had been reached between Hezbollah and Israel, saying that Israel would refrain from attacking Hezbollah and that Hezbollah would likewise refrain from attacking Israel. He also revealed he had stopped an Israeli strike on Beirut.

Israel on Tuesday underscored what it described as a “new equation,” under which it would strike Beirut’s southern suburbs if Hezbollah targeted northern Israel, adding that the United States had endorsed the principle.

Hezbollah Deputy Chairman of the Political Council Mahmoud Qomati told Agence France-Presse on Tuesday that the group would not accept any partial ceasefire agreement and rejected any arrangement that would trade an end to Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs for a halt to Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom voiced support for Lebanon’s negotiating efforts. The Lebanese presidency said President Joseph Aoun received a phone call from UK National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell to discuss security and military developments in Lebanon, as well as the course of negotiations.

Powell reaffirmed Britain’s support for Lebanon and its political choices aimed at preserving the country’s security and stability, according to the presidency.