Mazlum Abdi, Commander General of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), spoke to Ronahî TV about the latest developments in North and East Syria, including the decision to hang the Syrian flag on all assemblies, institutions and administration buildings of the Autonomous Administration, the Suleiman Shah Tomb, attacks on Manbij, attempts to attack Kobanê, the events in Deir ez-Zor, the talks with HTS and the unity of the Kurds. He said that ‘we are negotiating with Turkey for a permanent ceasefire through our friends’ (international coalition).

‘We are a part of Syria’

Referring to the decision to hang the Syrian flag on all councils, institutions and administration buildings of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria as of Thursday, Mazlum Abdî said, “We accepted this flag at the first congress of the YPG. We have nothing against this flag. Syria is divided into two parts; on the one hand, there was the Baathist flag until now, and on the other hand, there was the flag used by the faction we have now accepted. Due to the civil war, we used our own special flags, but now a different situation has emerged. An agreement has been reached on a flag throughout Syria. All peoples are flying this flag of independence. This flag is suitable for us. It is not the flag of the monist Syrian Arab Republic. We have taken a decision in this direction and I think this decision is correct. It shows that we are a part of Syria. Due to the agreement of the Syrian peoples on a flag, we have made such a decision because we are also a part of Syria.”

‘We are ready to do our part for the Suleyman Shah Tomb’

Mazlum Abdi also commented on his post on X on Thursday, in which he expressed their readiness to coordinate with all relevant parties to facilitate the return of the tomb of Suleyman Shah to its original shrine site: “There is no agreement. Many things are said. This is a legal international right of Turkey. There have been many problems on this issue. We have shown that we do not have a problem in that regard. We had previously provided the necessary assistance for its relocation and now we said, ‘we are ready to provide the necessary assistance’ for its reinstatement. We do not want to have problems with anyone. We are ready to do everything within the framework of international rights. We are a part of Syria. We have not received any response from Turkey. The international coalition forces among us are exchanging views with Turkey. They will receive a response from Turkey. We are ready to do whatever is our part.”

‘The agreement for Manbij has not yet entered into force’

Asked about the situation in the Manbij Canton, which is under Turkish and mercenary attack, Mazlum Abdî said, “We declared a ceasefire. International forces were also involved. They had negotiated with Turkey and we accepted it. However, the attacks have not stopped until now. They have stopped in Qereqozaq and Manbij, where we also have forces. There was an agreement that there should be no military forces in Manbij and that the people of Manbij should govern themselves. The forces in Manbij are not implementing this at the moment because this agreement has not yet entered into force. We hope that this agreement will come into force on Friday. We will see to what extent they will comply.”

‘Kobanê concerns the whole world’

Regarding the attacks against Kobanê, Mazlum Abdî also said: “The Qereqozaq bridge was crossed and there was an attack attempt, creating a danger. Their aim was to blockade Kobanê. However, our comrades prevented this with heroism. This is an important issue. This is not only a matter that concerns Kobanê and Rojava, but the whole world. We have taken every precaution against attacks. Just as we expelled ISIS from Kobanê, we will expel them once again. We have international friends. We hope that the agreement we made in Manbij will be generalised.”

‘SDF’s advance in Deir ez-Zor was a move against ISIS’

Mazlum Abdî emphasised that the SDF's advance into the areas vacated by the Syrian army in Deir ez-Zor after HTS took Damascus was a move against ISIS and said: “What happened there is different. There was a vacuum, there was a threat of ISIS. We took a decision with the International Coalition and controlled it for a while for security. We did not cross over to stay for a long time as it is said. There is no such thing as Turkey saying ‘they found an opportunity, they are expanding’. When the HTS forces arrived, we reached an agreement. Our forces stayed for a few more days and after completing their work, they withdrew from the former places. We made an agreement in a way that the Euphrates would be the border. We hope that this will not be broken.”

‘Negotiations to solve the problems continue’

Asked if there was a meeting between the HTS and the SDF, Mazlum Abdî said, “Before the HTS headed towards Aleppo, they sent us news and said that our target is “not the SDF and Kurds”. This has been realised in practice so far. There have been some problems. Groups loyal to Turkey attacked Til Rifet and Shehba. We have our forces in Aleppo now. There are officials negotiating to solve the problems. The talks need to expand. Our delegations need to go to Damascus. We are working on this. We are part of Syria. We need to solve our problems with Damascus. Whoever is in Damascus right now, it is natural that we meet with everyone, not just the HTS. Delegations from northern and eastern Syria should go to Damascus and start talking about solving the problems.”

‘What we did not expect was that the Syrian army would retreat so quickly’

Referring to the criticism as to why the SDF did not take any measures in Til Rifet and Shehba even though it had received information two months ago that HTS would take action, Mazlum Abdî said: “The Turks met with the Russians and informed them that HTS would attack. The Russians came to us and asked us for help. We said ‘there is nothing we can do about it, because we are protecting ourselves, we have problems’. And indeed, attacks followed. The Turks were right. Assad had made some preparations and sent his forces to Idlib to break this attack. But in the end, it seems possible that the Russians were deceived, and the Turks said they stopped it. We knew they were going to attack, but what we did not expect was that the Syrian army would retreat so quickly.”

‘A new era has begun in Syria’

Mazlum Abdî continued: “A new era has begun in Syria. Assad did not allow a political solution. But now there are attempts for a political solution. It is not clear how long this will last, because no official announcement has been made. We control the east of the Euphrates and the SNA and the HTS control the west. A political process is starting now. We will do our part. Representatives of all segments should take part in this process. We do not know what will happen in the future, we are taking precautions against everything. It is time to unite to get our rights everywhere.

We think that it is time for the displaced people to return to their own lands. We are not in favour of solving the problems with weapons, we think there is no need for this. Everyone should return to their own place. Afrin people should return to their own lands. The people who settled in Afrin came from outside Afrin and some of them returned to their own places. Afrin is now emptying out, its people should return to their own lands. This will not happen on its own, but through agreements. It is time for people in Serêkaniyê and Girê Spî to return to their lands. For this, there must be negotiations. Problems should be solved through dialogue, not war.

‘If there is to be a political process, no one should be left out’

Representatives of North and East Syria did not participate in the previous talks. Forty percent of the Syrian people were not present at those talks. Therefore, they were not successful. From now on, there will be talks with the participation of Syrian peoples. This makes us happy. Our people are organised. They can participate in this process in a more organised way. If there is to be a political process, no one should be left out.

‘Turkey is trying to prevent a solution’

When we meet with the groups fighting with us in Manbij, they tell us ‘Turkey should talk to us’. They cannot make a decision without Turkey. Turkey is trying to prevent a solution with its tanks, cannons and warplanes. Syrian peoples should solve their own problems. We are the dominant power in Syria. Turkey must realise this now. We are the main element of this land. We are in our own lands. The war is over everywhere now; it is only Turkey and the groups it supports that are causing war and conflict. They are the abnormal ones. Everyone should see this. Kurdish parties should come together and act. There can be no separation. We may have differences of opinion within ourselves, but we must be united against the outside. We hope that the forces in the Federal Kurdistan will also contribute positively to this process.”

‘There is pressure on Turkey to stop its attacks’

Asked if they had agreed on anything with the international powers, Mazlum Abdî stated: “We need to be transparent about this. Until today, there have been attacks on Shehba, Til Rifet and Manbij. Turkey wants to continue its attacks. There is pressure on Turkey to stop its attacks, but this does not mean that the attacks will end. We know that there is great pressure. There are efforts for a general ceasefire, we have diplomatic initiatives. Our friends travel back and forth between us. There is talk of a demilitarised zone, we are ready to discuss everything. The danger is not over. There are still threats. Our people must be vigilant. We are going through an extraordinary period. We need our unity more than ever. Our people must stand by their forces. We have experienced these difficult days before. We have overcome them with the support of our people; we will overcome them again.”