ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – President Masoud Barzani received Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), on Friday and discussed the newly reached agreement between Damascus and Rojava and its implementation, emphasizing the importance of Kurdish rights being preserved by the Syrian government.

The SDF delegation was received by Barzani in Pirmam, where the sides discussed “the situation in Rojava“ along with “the implementation of the agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF and the latest developments in Syria,” read a statement from Barzani’s office. 

In late January, the SDF announced that 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.

Barzani called on Damascus and Rojava to “commit to implementing the points of the agreement” and urged coordination among all parties to ensure that “the rights of the Kurdish people in Syria are protected and enshrined in future stages and in the constitution,” the statement said.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in January 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.

Following the announcement of the ceasefire and integration accord, the SDF said that progress was made regarding “the civil and educational rights of the Kurdish people and guaranteeing the return of displaced persons to their areas.” 

Abdi arrived in Erbil on Thursday, where he met Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani and later French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, where the SDF commander discussed the implementation of the newly reached agreement and the situation in Syria.

The Kurdish-led Rojava delegation met several times in Erbil with other Kurdish leaders and US representatives in an effort to reach a resolution to Damascus’s offensive.

President Barzani on Thursday said that a “great catastrophe” was prevented in Rojava after weeks of brutal attacks by Syrian forces.

Earlier in January, the Syrian Arab Army and its affiliated factions launched a violent military campaign on Rojava in a bid to secure Sharaa’s vision of a centralized Syria, killing hundreds of fighters and civilians in the process, with the attacking Syrian forces violating ceasefires, committing human rights violations, and possibly war crimes in their offensive.

The offensive sparked massive demonstration movements from Kurds across the Kurdistan Region and the Kurdish-majority southeast Turkey, with daily protests held across the world in solidarity with Rojava.

The clashes resulted in the breaching of several detention facilities in northern Syria housing veteran ISIS fighters, with a large number of detainees reported to have been released. Both sides have accused the other of the security breaches.