Kurdish Groups Agree to Attend Geneva 2 Under United Banner

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Syrian Kurdish People’s Council and Kurdistan National Council (KNC) have agreed to attend next month’s Geneva 2 conference under a united banner, and to reopen the Peshkhabur border with the Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq.

The agreement was declared Tuesday in Erbil by Abdulsalam Ahmed, the co-leader of the People's Council that is affiliated with the Democratic Union Party (PYD), and Tahir Sifuk, who heads the KNC.

Both leaders confirmed that Kurds will take part in the UN-backed conference in Geneva on January 22 as a single voice, and that whichever side attends, it will represent the other as well.

They also announced a deal to reopen the Peshkhabur border crossing between Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava) and the Kurdistan Region for humanitarian aid, trade and political delegations within 48 hours after signing the agreement.

The two leaders declared that anyone who has been killed in clashes or explosions from the Syrian civil war is considered a “martyr,” and that all political prisoners would be freed.

Agreements also include the formation of an 11-person committee to investigate the incidents in Amude and the village of Tel Ghazal, where PYD fighters stand accused of killing several people.

Ahmed and Sifuk said there still remained two issues that needed resolution: The interim administration declared by the PYD in Rojava and reinstatement of the Kurdish Supreme Council. They said these would be discussed in the next round of talks on January 15.

Tuesday’s agreement followed days of discussions by the two sides in Erbil. The talks were mediated by Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani, Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir and Leyla Zana, a Kurdish MP from the same city.

One of the main sticking points over any agreement between the two sides had been over security. The PYD has been unwilling to share control over security with anyone and recognizes only its own People’s Protection Units (YPG). The PYD also claims that anyone can serve within the YPG. The KNC has consistently proposed a united military force.