Summary
The Syrian military and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have agreed to a new four-day truce after a previous ceasefire ended. This comes after tensions rose when guards from the SDF left a camp housing people linked to the Islamic State, leading to the alleged escape of detainees. Both sides have accused each other of using detainees as tools to gain leverage in their conflict.
Key Facts
- A new four-day truce was announced between the Syrian military and the Kurdish-led SDF.
- The SDF guards left a camp in northeast Syria, reportedly allowing detainees connected to the Islamic State to escape.
- The al-Hol camp houses mostly women and children related to IS members; it currently has about 24,000 people.
- The Syrian interior ministry accused the SDF of letting IS detainees escape, but this could not be independently confirmed.
- The SDF stated that international inaction on handling IS led to their decision to redeploy forces from these camps.
- The Syrian military offered to take control of the al-Hol camp, accusing the SDF of using it for destabilization.
- Earlier reports mentioned 120 IS detainees escaped from a prison in Shaddadeh; 81 were recaptured.
- The SDF accused factions linked to Damascus of cutting water supplies to a prison near Raqqa.
