Sharaa warns of force as Hasakah talks with SDF stall

• Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa offers security deployment in Hasakah in talks with SDF leader Mazloum Abdi.
• Negotiations stall as Abdi rejects terms and issues call for mobilization amid ceasefire tensions.

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa presented an offer to the leader of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi, that would allow Syrian internal security forces to enter the city of Hasakah, according to sources cited by Al Jazeera. The proposal was delivered during five hours of talks on Monday that ended without agreement.

Terms of the proposal

A correspondent for the Syria Now platform said al-Sharaa offered Abdi the post of deputy defense minister and the nomination of a governor for Hasakah. In return, Damascus demanded the entry of internal security forces into the city and the neutralization of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.

Abdi, the report said, insisted that Hasakah remain under full SDF administration. He asked for five days to consult, a request al-Sharaa rejected. The president set a deadline until the end of Tuesday, warning of military action and of notifying the international community of a withdrawal from the talks.

Accusations escalate

The stalemate coincided with a sharp exchange of accusations. Interior Ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba said the SDF was suffering internal divisions and accused it of manipulating regional security after military and security failures.

Fawza Yousef, a member of the SDF negotiating body, countered that the government lacked political will to sustain a ceasefire. She said disarmament was impossible while “violations” continued and denied the presence of Kurdistan Workers’ Party elements among SDF fighters.

Following the meeting, the SDF called on what it described as its youth in Syria, neighboring countries, and Europe to join the “ranks of resistance.”

Fragile ceasefire

On Sunday evening, al-Sharaa signed a ceasefire agreement with the SDF that included the integration of its fighters into state institutions. Among the fourteen clauses was the transfer of responsibility for prisons and camps holding Islamic State suspects, along with the forces guarding them, to the Syrian government, which would assume full legal and security authority.

The agreement followed a military operation launched by the Syrian army days earlier that reclaimed wide areas in the east and northeast. Damascus accused the SDF of violating earlier accords signed ten months ago and failing to implement their provisions.

What comes next

Since the overthrow of former president Bashar al-Assad on December eight, 2024, the administration of President al-Sharaa has intensified efforts to restore security and extend state control across Syrian territory. With the Hasakah deadline looming, the coming hours will test whether diplomacy holds or gives way to renewed fighting.