ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Hasaka courthouse will be activated “very soon” as part of ongoing efforts to integrate institutions of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration (Rojava) into Syria’s state structures, Hasaka Governor told Rudaw following a series of meetings with Syrian government officials.
“We attended the judicial mediation conference under the sponsorship of the Syrian Ministry of Justice, and the integration of judges and employees of the Justice Authority of the Autonomous Administration was discussed, as well as activating the courthouse in Hasaka province very soon,” Nur al-Din Ahmad, Hasaka Governor, told Rudaw's Nushin Heme on Monday.
The developments are part of a broader process to implement the January 29 agreement between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which provides a framework for integrating military, security and civilian institutions in northeast Syria into the state.
The process is particularly significant for Hasaka, where the Autonomous Administration has operated its own civilian institutions and public services as early as 2012. The integration talks are expected to shape the future structure of government services, public employment and administration in the province.
Ahmad also said he met Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani at Tishreen Palace to discuss the general situation in Hasaka, including security and administrative issues and the implementation of the January 29 agreement.
Ahmad said talks with Syria’s transport, communications and administrative development ministers were underway and that “the Transport Directorate will be activated very soon.”
The administrative development ministry, meanwhile, discussed establishing a directorate in Hasaka to coordinate with provincial institutions and formalize the status of employees being integrated into state structures.
Education is among the issues being addressed as Damascus and Kurdish authorities work to implement the agreement. Ahmad said he also met with Syria’s education minister to discuss students’ situation, preparations for the new academic year, and plans and programs for schools.
Ahmad said meetings with the presidential team also addressed appointments in remaining towns and subdistricts, as well as municipal appointments and executive offices.
The discussions were “very positive,” he said, adding that the appointments would be completed “very soon, no later than next week.”
The governor also said he met with Syria’s minister of religious endowments to discuss integrating all employees of the Autonomous Administration’s religious authority into the provincial Directorate of Religious Endowments and activating the directorate in the coming period.
The meeting also covered the establishment of a local office for Hajj and Umrah, Ahmad said.
The January 29 agreement has become the main framework for negotiations between Damascus and the SDF over integrating institutions in northeast Syria into the Syrian state, while also addressing administrative and cultural issues in Kurdish-majority areas.
SDF commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi told Rudaw earlier this month that the integration process was nearing completion by the end of August.
