ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Syrian rebels led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) said late on Tuesday that they had taken the eastern city of Deir Ezzor from the control of Kurdish-led forces. At the same time, a war monitor confirmed Kurdish forces had withdrawn, as Syria's new transitional prime minister said it was time for "stability and calm" in the country.
"Our forces have seized the entire city of Deir Ezzor," the rebels said in a statement, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said that Kurdish forces had withdrawn to other localities.
The US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has not confirmed their withdrawal from Deir Ezzor.
Mohammad al-Bashir, who was appointed as the transitional head of government to run the country until March 1, said on Tuesday, "Now it is time for this people to enjoy stability and calm."
After the downfall of Assad on Sunday, SDF commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi said they had not "made any decision to fight against” anti-government opposition forces, nor do the anti-government forces plan to fight the SDF.
The US-backed Kurdish forces currently control the bulk of northeastern and eastern regions of Syria, amounting to a quarter territory of the country. Formed in 2015, the SDF is considered the Kurdish de facto army in Syria
Clashes between SDF and Turkey-backed factions
Soon after the HTS and its allied factions launched the November 27 lightning offensive, which ended with the fall of the Damascus regime, Turkey-backed forces attacked SDF forces, initially taking over Til Rafaat and its surrounding villages and regions in Aleppo province.
The Ankara-backed groups also took over Manbij, northeast of Aleppo from the SDF control on Tuesday.
SDF commander-in-chief said on X that they would stop Turkey and its Syrian proxies from further expansions, adding they had reached a ceasefire with them in Manbij “with US mediation”.
"The fighters of the Manbij Military Council, who have been resisting the attacks since November 27, will be withdrawn from the area as soon as possible,” Abdi wrote. "Our goal is to achieve a ceasefire throughout Syria and enter into a political process for the future of the country.”
Fighting between Turkish-backed and Kurdish-led forces in Manbij has left 218 people dead "in just three days,” SOHR reported.
Hours before the ceasefire was brokered, Abdi said the Turkey-led groups had launched an attack on Kobane earlier on Tuesday, but their forces put up stiff resistance and "thwarted the attempt of the Turkish-backed factions to advance towards Kobane."
Turkey considers the People’s Defense Units (YPG), which is the backbone of the SDF, as inextricably linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), however, the YPG insists that they merely subscribe to a similar ideology.
The PKK is an armed group that has fought for increased Kurdish rights in Turkey for decades. The group is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara.
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