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Fighting this month between the Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces has civilians on both sides of the frontline worried about their futures or harboring resentments as the country’s new leaders push for a transition after years of civil war.
The fighting ended with government forces taking over much of the territory previously controlled by Kurdish-led Syria democracy Armed forces and a fragile ceasefire are holding on in the country’s northeast. Self-Defense Forces Militants are to be integrated into Syria’s army and police, ending months of disputes.
Arabs account for the majority in the areas that have changed hands; Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, largely dissatisfied with SDF rule, celebrated its withdrawal.
but thousands Kurdish Residents of these areas fled, while non-Kurdish residents remained in majority-Kurdish enclaves still controlled by the SDF. The International Organization for Migration has registered more than 173,000 people displaced.
Escape again and again
One of them was Subhi Hannan, who after escaping Raqqa slept with his wife, three children and mother in a cold classroom in the SDF-controlled city of Qamishli.
The family is familiar with displacement after years of civil war under former President Bashar Assad. They fled their hometown of Afrin for the first time in 2018 amid an offensive by Turkish-backed rebels. Five years later, Hannan stepped on a landmine and lost both legs.
During the rebel offensive that toppled Assad in December 2024, the family fled again, landing in Raqqa.
Hannan said that on the family’s latest flight this month, their convoy was intercepted by government forces who arrested most of the escorting SDF fighters and killed one. Hannan said the militants also took his money and mobile phone and confiscated the car the family was traveling in.
“I’m 42 years old and I’ve never seen anything like this,” Hannan said. “I had two legs amputated and they were beating me.”
Now, he said, “I just want safety and stability, whether it’s here or somewhere else.”
Khalil Ebo, the father of another family in the convoy, confirmed confrontations and thefts by government forces and said two of his sons were injured in the crossfire.
The Syrian Defense Ministry acknowledged in a statement that the Syrian army had “repeatedly violated established legal and disciplinary provisions” during this month’s offensive and said it was taking legal action against the perpetrators.
Changes from previous acts of violence
The level of violence against civilians in clashes between government and SDF fighters has been reported to be far lower than last year’s fighting on Syria’s coast and in the southern province of Suweida. Hundreds of civilians from the Alawite and Druze religious minorities have been killed in retaliatory attacks, many by government-affiliated militants.
This time, government forces opened “humanitarian corridors” in multiple areas for Kurds and other civilians to escape. Meanwhile, government forces are occupying areas with a predominantly Arab majority and their advance is being welcomed.
A clause in the ceasefire agreement says government forces should not enter Kurdish-majority towns. But residents of the Kurdish enclave remain fearful.
The city of Kobani is surrounded by government-controlled territory and is effectively under siege, with residents reporting power and water cuts and shortages of basic supplies. A U.N. aid convoy entered the enclave for the first time on Sunday.
Armed civilians volunteered to conduct night patrols on the streets of SDF-controlled Qamishli to monitor for any attacks.
“We left and closed our businesses to defend our people and our city,” said Suhail Ali, a volunteer. “Because we saw what happened on the coast and in Suweida, we don’t want that to happen again here.”
resentment remains
On the other side of the front lines in Raqqa, dozens of Arab families waited outside Aktan prison and local courts over the weekend to see if their loved ones would be released after SDF fighters evacuated the facilities.
Many residents of the region believe Arabs are unfairly targeted by the SDF and often imprisoned on trumped-up charges.
At least 126 boys under the age of 18 were released on Saturday after government forces took over prisons.
Issa Mayouf, from the village of Hamrat, waited with his wife outside the court on Sunday for news about their 18-year-old son, who was arrested four months ago. Mayouf said he was accused of supporting terrorist groups after SDF troops found Islamic chants on his phone along with images mocking SDF commander Mazloum Abdi.
“The SDF is failing as a government,” Mayouf said, “and there are no services. Look at the streets, the infrastructure, the education. Everything is zero.”
Northeastern Syria is home to oil and gas reserves and some of the country’s most fertile farmland. The SDF “have all the wealth of the country, but they have done nothing for the country,” Mayouf said.
Mona Yacoubian, director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Kurdish civilians in besieged areas fear “attacks and even atrocities” by government or allied forces.
But Arabs living in areas formerly controlled by the SDF “also harbor deep fear and resentment towards the Kurds, who have been accused of discrimination, intimidation, forced recruitment and even torture in custody,” she said.
“The experiences on both sides highlight the deep distrust and resentment in Syria’s diverse society that threatens to undermine the country’s transition,” Yacoubian said.
She added that the government of interim Syrian President Ahmed Salad now needs to strike a balance between flexing its power and creating a space for the country’s anxious minorities to have a say in their fate.
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AlSayed reported from Raqqa, Syria, and Sewell reported from Beirut.