Kurdish-led forces impose curfew in northeast Syria after deadly clashes
The Islamic State and the government in Damascus were blamed for the unrest in Deir Ezzor, as well as Iranian forces for taking advantage of the strife
Kurdish-led authorities in northeastern Syria imposed a curfew in the province of Deir Ezzor, starting Saturday morning, after the arrest of an armed group’s leader prompted deadly clashes.
"The Deir Ezzor Military Council and the Internal Security Forces announce a curfew,” the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said in a statement, starting “from 0500 AM (0200 GMT) on September 2, for 48 hours.”
Earlier, on Sunday, the SDF arrested Ahmad al-Khabil, the chief of the Deir Ezzor Military Council, a local Arab armed group affiliated with the Kurdish force.
The arrest triggered clashes that left dozens dead, and the SDF has blamed the Islamic State (IS) and Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, which have attempted to “cause civil strife in the region and lure civilians into their dirty plans.”
Meanwhile, Iran-backed Arab fighters had also taken advantage of the clashes to cross over into two Kurdish-controlled villages, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) war monitor head, Rami Abdel Rahman, told AFP.
After clashing with local Kurdish-led forces, the Iranian-backed fighters then published a video, also inciting strife, urging Arab tribes to turn against Kurdish authorities.
As for the arrest of al-Khabil, the details were not released. But SOHR and a local activist told AFP that he was known to run smuggling activities, and 54 people have been killed since the clashes broke out, including six civilians.
The United States responded to the escalations, calling on "all parties to de-escalate and peacefully resolve the situation.”
"The violence in northeast Syria must cease," the U.S. military said, as part of its Operation Inherent Resolve, which supports the local fight against remnants of IS, having spearheaded the offensive that defeated the group’s self-declared caliphate in 2019.