
Rojava says won't implement decisions of new ‘exclusionary' government in Syria
PYD confirms 'serious efforts' for Turkey-SDF ceasefire in northeast Syria
Syrian cancer patients face growing crises due to medicine shortages
Germany welcomes formation of new Syrian government
Syria's Sharaa announces new cabinet
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdish-led administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Sunday criticized Syria's newly-formed interim government as 'exclusionary' and 'failing' to uphold diversity, stressing that they would not abide by its decisions.
Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Saturday announced his new 23-minister cabinet, which includes ministers from his former government.
The Democratic Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (DAANES) on Sunday rejected the new cabinet, claiming that it 'resembled its [caretaker] predecessor in failing to take Syria's diversity into consideration and allowing a single faction to maintain control.' It warned that any government that does not represent Syria's plurality will not be able to properly manage the country and pull it out of its crisis.
The DAANES further noted that they will not adhere to the decisions of the new government in Damascus.
'We will not be concerned with implementing and executing decisions issued by it, as this insistence on repeating past mistakes will harm Syrians and will never launch a comprehensive political process that can provide solutions to the pending issues, problems, and crises Syria is experiencing,' their statement read.
The Kurdish-led administration has previously criticized other actions taken by the interim government in Damascus, accusing it of marginalizing Kurds and other minorities.
In early March, Rojava's ruling and opposition parties condemned Damascus for excluding the Kurds from the committee tasked with drafting Syria's constitutional declaration.
Two weeks later, the Kurdish-led administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) strongly rejected the draft of the interim constitution, approved by Sharaa, as perpetuating policies of ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Prior to that, the Kurdish opposition parties in mid-February slammed the exclusion of Kurds from a key committee tasked by Sharaa to prepare for a National Dialogue Conference aimed at discussing Syria's future.
Importantly, the interim constitution and its drafting committee, as well as the National Dialogue Conference and its committee, drew criticism from other components of Syrian society, including the Druze and the Christians.
Following a swift offensive, a coalition of rebel groups led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - headed by Sharaa - on December 8 toppled the Assad regime. Sharaa was in late January appointed as Syria's interim President.
Upon his appointment, Sharaa vowed to uphold the rights of all ethnic and religious groups. However, the international community has repeatedly criticized the new leadership in Damascus for its treatment of Syria's minority groups.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Iraqi News
4 hours ago
- Iraqi News
Calm returns to south Syria after violence that killed 1,000
Sweida – Calm returned to southern Syria's Sweida province on Sunday, a monitor and AFP correspondents reported, after a week of sectarian violence between Druze fighters and rival groups that killed more than 1,000 people. A ceasefire announced on Saturday appeared to be holding after earlier agreements failed to end fighting between longtime rivals the Druze and the Bedouin that spiralled to draw in the Islamist-led government, the Israeli military and armed tribes from other parts of Syria. AFP correspondents on the outskirts of Sweida city reported hearing no clashes on Sunday morning, with government forces deployed in some locations in the province to enforce the truce and at least one humanitarian convoy headed for the Druze-majority city. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that since around midnight (2100 GMT Saturday), 'Sweida has been experiencing a cautious calm', adding government security forces had blocked roads leading to the province in order to prevent tribal fighters from going there. The Britain-based Observatory gave an updated toll on Sunday of more than 1,000 killed since the violence erupted a week ago, including 336 Druze fighters and 298 civilians from the minority group, as well as 342 government security personnel and 21 Sunni Bedouin. Witnesses, Druze factions and the Observatory have accused government forces of siding with the Bedouin and committing abuses including summary executions when they entered Sweida days ago. Hanadi Obeid, a 39-year-old doctor, told AFP that 'the city hasn't seen calm like this in a week'. – 'Totally calm' – The interior ministry said overnight that Sweida city was 'evacuated of all tribal fighters, and clashes within the city's neighbourhoods were halted'. The Observatory had said Druze fighters retook control of the city on Saturday evening. Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa had on Saturday announced a fresh ceasefire in Sweida and renewed a pledge to protect Syria's ethnic and religious minorities in the face of the latest sectarian violence since Islamists overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December. A spokesman for Syria's tribal and clan council told Al Jazeera late Saturday that fighters had left the city 'in response to the call of the presidency and the terms of the agreement'. Another medic inside Sweida told AFP by telephone on Sunday that 'the situation is totally calm… We aren't hearing clashes.' 'No medical or relief assistance has entered until now,' the medic added, requesting anonymity due to the security situation. State news agency SANA published images showing medical aid being prepared near the health ministry in Damascus and quoted Health Minister Musab al-Ali as saying assistance would be delivered to Sweida's main hospital, where bodies have piled up. Inside the city, where around 150,000 people live, residents have been holed up in their homes without electricity and water, and food supplies have also been scarce. The United Nations migration agency said more than 128,000 people in Sweida province have been displaced by the violence. – 'Brutal acts' – US special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said Sunday that the country stood at a 'critical juncture', adding that 'peace and dialogue must prevail — and prevail now'. 'All factions must immediately lay down their arms, cease hostilities, and abandon cycles of tribal vengeance,' he wrote on X, saying 'brutal acts by warring factions on the ground undermine the government's authority and disrupt any semblance of order'. Sharaa's announcement Saturday came hours after the United States said it had negotiated a ceasefire between Syria's government and Israel, which had bombed government forces in both Sweida and Damascus earlier in the week. Israel, which has its own Druze community, has said it was acting in defence of the group, as well as to enforce its demands for the total demilitarisation of Syria's south. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday urged the Syrian government's security forces to prevent jihadists from entering and 'carrying out massacres' in the south, and called on Damascus to 'bring to justice anyone guilty of atrocities including those in their own ranks'.


Rudaw Net
4 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Kurdish armed group blames Iran for deadly Sulaimani drone attack
Also in Iran Iran says agreed to a new round of nuclear talks with E3 Iran frees teen held for reciting Kurdish poetry, father still detained Iran expands crackdown on alleged spies, collaborators with Israel, US Trump says scheduled new nuclear talks with Iran A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Eastern Kurdistan Units (YRK) on Sunday accused Iran of carrying out a deadly drone strike in eastern Sulaimani province's Penjwen district, killing one of its fighters. Local officials on Saturday said the drone was Turkish. Ankara has not commented on the incident. 'This attack was carried out by Iran against our forces,' read a statement from the YRK, the armed wing of the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK). It said suicide 'suicide drone' killed a fighter identified as Simko Kobane. PJAK is an Iran-based armed group widely believed to be an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The latter group declared a unilateral ceasefire and on July 11 had a ceremonial disarmament where 30 fighters, including commanders, burned their weapons. On May 12, the PKK announced its dissolution and intention to disarm after being urged to do so by their founder, Abdullah Ocalan, who said it was time to take the struggle for Kurdish rights in Turkey into the political sphere. However, PJAK has said it would continue its armed struggle against Tehran despite PKK's decision to dissolve itself, saying Ocalan's decision does not include them. 'We, as the forces of Eastern Kurdistan [western Iran], will not remain defenseless against these types of attacks and will defend ourselves to the end within the framework of our legitimate rights. We do not attack anyone in any way, but we always defend ourselves,' the group added. PJAK operates from bases in the Kurdistan Region's Mount Qandil, where the PKK is also headquartered. The group has clashed with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is banned in Iran. Several Iranian-Kurdish opposition groups, including PJAK, the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI), Komala, and the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), have been relocated away from the Iran-Kurdistan Region border as part of a 2023 security agreement between Baghdad and Tehran. Iran has frequently targeted these groups with cross-border strikes, accusing them of inciting unrest inside its borders.


Rudaw Net
5 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Sunni fighters threaten to ‘burn' Suwayda despite ceasefire
Also in Syria Secretary Rubio warns Damascus over Suwayda violence as tribal forces withdraw 'They're erasing our identity': Suwayda native in Erbil pleads for end to violence Clashes continue in Suwayda, death toll passes 900: Watchdog Syrian president confirms truce as state forces enter Suwayda A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The pro-government Sunni fighters are threatening to attack the southern Druze-majority province of Suwayda and 'burn' all inside if their alleged hostages are not released by Druze militants. A war monitor reported over a thousand deaths in the latest sectarian conflict. 'We will take our revenge - our prisoners are inside, our martyrs are inside, our killed ones, and our women,' a fighter affiliated with the Sunni Bedouin tribes told Rudaw while waiting at the entrance of Suwayda province along with dozens others. They were attempting to enter the province to resume clashes with the Druze fighters but were stopped by state security forces who had been deployed to implement a US-brokered ceasefire. The tribal fighter added that they do not have an issue with the Druze community, except for Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajari, the most prominent Druze spiritual leader who has rebelled against Damascus and whose fighters have been entangled in days of clashes with the Bedouin tribes. 'We will burn Suwayda along with all those inside. We are bearing the dignity of the homeland and the dignity of the president [Ahmed al-Sharaa]. We are waiting for the president's words,' the angry fighter noted, claiming that the Druze militants are holding Bedouin hostages. Clashes have continued between Druze fighters and tribal groups in Suwayda, pushing the death toll to at least 1,017 despite the ongoing ceasefire announced earlier on Saturday, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Rami Abdulrahman, head of the war monitor, told Rudaw English on Sunday that among the dead are 440 residents of Suwayda, including 104 civilians. Of those civilians, six were children and 16 were women. Another 361 fatalities were from the defense ministry and state-linked General Security elements, including 18 Bedouin tribal members and one Lebanese national gunman. Another Bedouin fighter told Rudaw at the entrance of Suwayda that his main concerns are the members of his tribe who have allegedly been held hostage by the Druze inside Suwayda. 'We are with the truce but I swear by God if they violate the ceasefire no one can stop us, including the president and minister of finance. Let them [Syrian state forces] withdraw [from Suwayda] now and leave the matter to the tribes, to the people of Syria - not Israel and not America or any country. No one will stop us,' he said. Many other fighters around him were furious and called for revenge. The fighting erupted between the Druze and Bedouin tribes on July 13, leading to a regional crisis as Israel intervened in support of the Druze - hitting several targets - including Syrian state forces and an airstrike on the building of the defence ministry in Damascus. The ceasefire between Israel and Syria - brokered by Washington - was announced Saturday by the US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack. There have been several ceasefires by the Syrian government in Suwayda, none of which have lasted. The latest ceasefire plan, according to Syrian Information Minister Hamza al-Mustafa, consists of three phases: the initial deployment of internal security forces to de-escalate clashes and secure key routes, followed by the opening of humanitarian corridors between Daraa and Suwayda to allow the evacuation of civilians and wounded, and finally, the gradual reactivation of state institutions and full restoration of law and order. On Sunday, Mustafa blamed the deterioration of the security situation on 'flagrant Israeli intervention' and the subsequent withdrawal of Syrian security forces as part of international mediation. 'This has resulted in the loss of the ability to uphold order and stability in the region, impacting the capacity for continued humanitarian operations and the provision of basic needs for the civilian population,' he added. Meanwhile, the Syrian foreign ministry accused 'outlawed armed militias affiliated with Hikmat al-Hajri,' the Druze sheikh, of preventing aid deliveries into the province since Wednesday. Only a limited number of Syrian Arab Red Cross vehicles have been allowed to enter, according to the ministry. The new Syrian authorities who toppled Bashar al-Assad in December have come under criticism for doing little to protect minorities since coming to power. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Sunday that the latest clashes in Suwayda have displaced a total of 128,000 individuals, reported AFP. Barrack said on Sunday that all parties have ceased hostilities. 'As of 17:00 Damascus time, all parties have navigated to a pause and cessation of hostilities. The next foundation stone on a path to inclusion, and lasting de-escalation, is a complete exchange of hostages and detainees, the logistics of which are in process,' he said on X. Solin Mohammedamin contributed to this article.