ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi, on Tuesday announced the dissolution of the Kurdish-led force, declaring its mission complete.
"We hereby announce, as of today, the conclusion of the mission of the Syrian Democratic Forces, and we responsibly declare its dissolution as an independent military force," Abdi said in Damascus following a meeting with Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
"We will always carry the memory of our martyrs, and hold their sacrifices in our hearts and conscience - for they did not fight for the sake of war, but for a day when Syrians would no longer need to fight," he added.
The SDF and the Syrian government signed an agreement on January 29 to integrate the force, along with the Kurdish region's security and administrative bodies, into state structures. The deal followed weeks of clashes between both sides.
SDF fighters have been incorporated into the Syrian army as brigades while remaining deployed in the Kurdish region. Abdi announced on Thursday that the integration process had been completed.
"We want this day to mark a real transition: from the battlefield to the field of development, from the era of arms to the era of peace, and from defending Syria to building Syria," Abdi said on Tuesday.
He noted that "the right to education in Kurdish is among the most fundamental rights of our Kurdish people."
In an interview with Rudaw earlier this month, Abdi said discussions with government officials had focused on Kurdish-language schooling, reporting progress in the talks.
Unconfirmed reports emerged on Tuesday that Abdi had been appointed as a special presidential envoy for Kurdish affairs, though the claim could not be independently verified.
The SDF was founded in 2015 as a Kurdish-led military coalition that served as the de facto army the Kurdish autonomous administration in Rojava. With the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) forming its core alongside Arab and Christian factions, the SDF acted as the primary ground partner of the US-led global coalition in the campaign to defeat the Islamic State (ISIS).
Updated at 9:51pm
