A Syrian official said Monday that security forces will enter the city of Qamishli in the countryside of Al-Hasakah province in northeastern Syria in the implementation of an agreement concluded with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The remarks were made by Hasakah’s Internal Security Commander Marwan al-Ali to Alikhbaria TV hours after security forces began entering the city.
“A number of vehicles and Interior Ministry personnel entered Hasakah today, to be followed by the entry of similar vehicles and forces into Qamishli,” Al-Ali said, without specifying a timetable.
He confirmed that “Asayish forces and other security forces affiliated with the SDF will be integrated into the Interior Ministry’s structure after the implementation of the agreement’s provisions.”
“We decided not to allow journalists to enter the city of Hasakah due to the ambiguous situation, to avoid provocations and to ensure their safety,” he added.
He also confirmed that “the security forces currently present in Hasakah will remain in their positions and similar forces will enter Qamishli.”
Earlier Monday, the channel reported that internal security forces had entered Al-Hasakah amid a warm welcome from local residents.
The two sides reached a comprehensive agreement on Friday to gradually integrate the SDF military and civilian institutions into the state, after it ceded territory to advancing government troops in recent weeks following months of tensions and sporadic clashes.
The government's push to extend its authority across the entire country comes as a blow to the SDF, who had sought to preserve their de facto autonomy in parts of the north and northeast that they seized while battling the ISIL during Syria's civil war.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a key backer of the Syrian government, warned on Monday that anyone who attempted to "sabotage" the deal between Damascus and the Kurds would be "crushed".
Erdoğan said the agreement marked "a new chapter" for Syria, adding that he hoped it would be "sustained through peace, stability, development, and prosperity".
"We hope that the agreement will be implemented in a manner consistent with its spirit, without resorting to cheap calculations such as obstruction, stalling, or foot-dragging," he said, adding that whoever attempted to "sabotage" the deal would be "crushed".
The United States, which led a military coalition that backed the YPG/SDF campaign against ISIL, has drawn close to Syria's new Islamist authorities, recently saying the purpose of its alliance with the Kurdish forces was largely over.
Syrian Information Minister Hamza Mustafa has said the integration deal also includes the handover of oil fields, the Qamishli airport and border crossings to the government within 10 days.
Mazloum Abdi, head of the SDF, had previously said the deal would be implemented on the ground from Monday, with both sides to pull forces back from frontline positions in parts of the northeast, and from the town of Kobane in the north.
Later on Monday, state media reported that government security personnel entered the countryside around Kobane, more than 200 kilometres (125 miles) from Hasakeh.
Syrian state television said a United Nations aid convoy of 20 trucks had reached Kobane on Monday.
