ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said Friday it has reached a “comprehensive agreement” with Damascus that will see a phased integration process of the Kurdish-led forces into the Syrian state after weeks-long clashes between both sides. 

The agreement includes “the withdrawal of military forces from contact points,” the entry of Syrian interior ministry security forces into the Rojava cities of Hasakah and Qamishli, and “the commencement of the integration of security forces in the region,” the SDF said in a statement on Friday.

The accord also provides for the formation of a military division under Syrian state control comprising three SDF brigades and a brigade from the Kobane forces within a division under the auspices of Aleppo province.

The Kurdish-majority Kobane, notorious for its staunch resistance against an Islamic State (ISIS) siege in 2014, found itseld once more encircled during Damascus' recent offensive, with the co-chair of city's health department Aziza Ibrahim telling The New Region on Wednesday that the health situation in the city is getting worse, warning that “we only have medicine left for one more week.”

The integration of the institutions of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) “into the institutions of the Syrian state, with the regularization of civil servants,” was further highlighted as a part of the agreement.  

Damascus has launched a brutal offensive against Rojava in a bid to secure Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s vision of a united, centralized Syria, despite the country’s marginalized minorities repeatedly calling for federalism.

The assault has left hundreds dead and forced Kurdish-led forces, who defeated ISIS in Syria, to cede swathes of territory and withdraw to Hasaka province, with the attacking Syrian forces violating ceasefires, committing human rights violations, and possibly war crimes in their offensive.

A source confirmed to The New Region on Thursday that SDF chief Mazloum Abdi was in Damascus for talks with the Syrian government.

Abdi previously travelled to the Syrian capital on Tuesday to discuss a ceasefire between Kurdish-led forces and Syrian state factions and the bringing of the former under the latter's auspices under an integration agreement.

The SDF’s Friday statement also noted that an agreement was reached on settling “the civil and educational rights of the Kurdish people and guaranteeing the return of displaced persons to their areas.” 

Following clashes between Damascus-affiliated forces and Kurds in Rojava, the Syrian government has taken steps to recognize the cultural and civil rights of Kurdish communities. 

On Wednesday, the Syrian interior ministry issued an urgent decree granting citizenship to stateless Kurds in Rojava, ending more than 60 years of exclusion from government services for those without an official nationality.

Earlier in January, Sharaa issued a decree aimed at providing linguistic and cultural rights for Kurds, designating Kurdish as a national language that can be taught as an “elective” course in the Kurdish-populated parts of Syria.