ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Saturday issued a general amnesty in areas of Deir ez-Zor province that are newly under their control.
“As our forces advance into Deir Ezzor to secure the region in light of the evolving situation, we are declaring a general amnesty without exception in these areas,” SDF General Commander Mazloum Abdi stated on X.
Abdi urged the people and tribes of the province in eastern Syria to cooperate and “prevent chaos.”
The SDF announced on Friday that they had deployed to areas previously held by the Syrian army in Deir ez-Zor. The army withdrew as it is facing a rapidly moving offensive by rebel forces in the north and west.
Basam Ishak, a representative of the SDF’s political wing in Washington, told Rudaw on Saturday that the Kurdish-led force is now in control of approximately 40 percent of Syrian territory.
Ishak said the deployment into previously regime-held territory was necessary to avoid a “security vacuum.”
One of the security threats comes from a resurgent Islamic State (ISIS).
Abdi told reporters on Friday that “there are increased activities of ISIS mercenaries in the Badia region, and the south, and east of Deir ez-Zor, and Raqqa. There are movements and they have taken control of some areas recently.”
He said that they are working with the United States-led global coalition to recapture these areas.
Syria’s 13-year civil war dramatically reignited late last month when a coalition of rebels led by the Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a blistering offensive against the Syrian army. They quickly took control of the northern city of Aleppo, the largest in the country, and then advanced to capture the strategic central province of Hama. They also took control of Daraa city late on Friday and are reportedly advancing towards the capital Damascus.
The SDF lost control of the Shahba area in northern Aleppo to Ankara-backed militias after HTS took over most of the province.
