UPDATE - Syria says SDF released ISIS detainees, withdrew from guarding Al-Hol camp in Hasakah

​​​​​​​UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS; REVISES HEADLINE

By Rania Abushamala

ISTANBUL (AA) – Syria’s Interior Ministry accused the YPG/SDF terrorist group on Tuesday of releasing ISIS (Daesh) detainees and their families from prisons and withdrawing from guarding Al-Hol camp in eastern Hasakah without coordination with the government or the US-led international coalition.

In a statement, the ministry said after the recent ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF, the group “released a number of prisoners from the ISIS terror organization and their families from detention facilities.”

“Today, its members assigned to guard Al-Hol camp in eastern Hasakah withdrew without any coordination with the Syrian government or the international coalition, in a move aimed at exerting pressure on the government through the counterterrorism file,” it added.

Al-Hol camp, located in northeastern Syria, houses tens of thousands of people, including families of suspected ISIS members, as well as displaced Syrians and foreign nationals.

The ministry said it is closely monitoring developments and “taking all necessary measures, in coordination and cooperation with the international coalition, to maintain security and stability and prevent any attempts that threaten public safety.”

The Syrian government, meanwhile, said that it had formally notified the US late Monday “of the SDF intention to withdraw from their positions around Al-Hol camp, which required immediate action to prevent any potential security vacuum.”

In a statement, the government said it had informed the US side and other concerned parties late Monday of its “full and immediate readiness to take over these positions and manage them security-wise to ensure stability and prevent terrorist groups from exploiting this withdrawal.”

- Deliberate procrastination

The government said the SDF has shown “deliberate procrastination in completing the handover process,” calling the behavior “an attempt to mix the cards and export a new security crisis in the region.”

It held the SDF leadership fully responsible for any consequences resulting from “this deliberate delay,” and called on the US “to assume its responsibilities and apply pressure to complete the handover process without further delay.”

The Syrian Defense Ministry, for its part, stressed that its top priority is to combat the ISIS terror group, rejecting “the use of the detainees file as hostages or political bargaining chips by the SDF leadership to spread chaos and undermine stability.”

It called on the SDF leadership “to honor its commitments and urgently implement the Jan. 18 agreement.”

It further reaffirmed its “absolute commitment to protecting our Kurdish people and safeguarding their security,” stressing that the Syrian forces “will not enter Kurdish villages and towns.”

“The army is a shield for all Syrians, and its goal is to restore stability and protect state institutions,” the statement said.

On Sunday, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa announced a ceasefire agreement with the SDF to integrate its members into state institutions.

Under the deal, the SDF will withdraw its military formations east of the Euphrates River and hand over administrative and security control of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor provinces to the Syrian state.

The agreement also provides for the integration of SDF military and security personnel into the Syrian ministries of defense and interior following individual security vetting, as well as the transfer of border crossings, oil and gas fields, and civilian institutions to government control.

The deal followed a military operation launched by the Syrian Army, through which it regained wide areas in eastern and northeastern Syria after repeated violations by the SDF of earlier agreements signed with Damascus nearly a year ago.