Kurds should present demands to Damascus as one team: Politician

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Syrian Kurds should join forces and head to Damascus to present their demands as one team, suggested a veteran Kurdish politician on Wednesday as the country navigates a transitional phase.

"I suggest that they [Kurds] separate one issue from another. The general issues like power, reference, and power sharing in Rojava should be put aside. The most important thing now is the identification of Kurdish demands in Syria and what to agree on before presenting them to the new Syrian regime,” Omar Sheikhmous told Rudaw's Dilbixwin Dara.

“We know that there is a good opportunity, there is a willingness and they listen. They are also ready to include Kurds in the authority. Therefore, they should focus on points they can agree on. They should also focus on the demands of Kurds in Syria regarding their language, culture, autonomous administration... and federalism,” added the politician who is originally from northeast Syria (Rojava) but lives in Sweden.

Many Syrians and foreign powers are worried that Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the force that spearheaded a recent military offensive that ousted Bashar al-Assad, may impose strict Islamic rules and threaten minority groups such as Kurds, Druze, Christians, and Alawites.

The Druze have established militia groups in Suwayda province and elsewhere, refusing to allow the security forces to enter their region. They have also declined demands from Damascus to lay down their arms until the country drafts a new constitution.

Sheikhmous believes that the demands for federalism or other forms of decentralized power by the Druze and other minority groups provide an opportunity for the Kurds to achieve a similar status.

A top Syrian official told Rudaw on Sunday that they will not allow any federalism or decentralized rule calling it a “red line.”

“We will not allow any federalism or any decentralized rule, and legitimize any solution based on ethnic, racial, or religious dimensions. This is a red line for all Syrians, and we hope that all other components will rise to the responsibility and contribute to building their country,” Ahmed al-Dalati, a leader in Syria’s Military Operations Command and deputy commander-in-chief of HTS, said.

Sheikhmous highlighted that it is very important for Kurdish to be considered a second official language in the new Syrian constitution.

He also said that it is important that the new administration shares the economic resources equally among the regions - unlike the former regime.

There are ongoing efforts to resume intra-Kurdish talks between Kurdish ruling and opposition parties in Rojava. The talks began a decade ago but have been stalled for years due to disagreements.

The Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC), an umbrella group of Kurdish opposition parties in Rojava, has been in constant rivalry with the ruling People's Democratic Party (PYD) over maintaining influence in Rojava.

Mazloum Abdi, chief of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), held a meeting with the ENKS last month to pave the way for the resumption of ENKS-PYD meetings.

The latest talks are mediated by American and French diplomats.

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