• SDF forces to withdraw east of Euphrates; Damascus to take over Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa governorates
• Deal stipulates SDF leaders to fill senior civil, military roles

DAMASCUS: The Syrian president and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced an immediate ceasefire after fierce fighting, which saw the government forces take control of territories held by the Kurdish SDF.

The Syrian army, in its lightning advance towards the key city of Raqqa in the north, captured Tabqa before reaching a ceasefire with the Kurdish forces on Sunday on all fronts. Al Jazeera, quoting the Syrian state media, said that the SDF forces agreed to withdraw to the east of the Euphrates under the agreement.

According to Al Jazeera, the agreement provides for the immediate and complete administrative and military handover of Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa governorates to Damascus. The agreement also allowed the government to assume control of all civilian institutions in the two governorates, and current employees would be reinstated through decrees.

The government promised it would not target the SDP supporters or fighters. The ceasefire granted the Syrian government control over all border crossings as well as oil and gas fields in the region. In addition, all civil institutions in al-Hasakah Governorate are to be integrated into official Syrian state institutions and administrative structures, while a presidential decree will be issued naming a candidate as governor.

The agreement also stipulated that a list of proposed leaders submitted by the SDP command will be used to fill senior military, security, and civilian posts in the central government, while heavy military forces from the city of Ain al-Arab/Kobani will withdraw. Furthermore, it also envisaged a local police force affiliated with the Syrian interior ministry besides the creation of a security force drawn from local residents.

The agreement also allowed the integration of the administration in charge of the Islamic State camps into the Syrian state structure.

Syrian army advances

Earlier in the day, Reuters reported that the Syrian government troops were entering the outskirts of Raqqa and were advancing deeper into the northeast of the country, the last stronghold of the US-backed autonomous Kurdish-led administration. Two Syrian military sources said that tanks had begun entering Raqqa, once controlled by the Islamic State, which the SDF captured in October 2017.

Thousands of residents took to the streets of Raqqa to celebrate the Syrian army’s advances as SDF forces pulled out their equipment, two residents said.

The army, with its Arab tribal allies, had earlier taken control of Deir al-Zor’s main oil and gas fields east of the Euphrates River — a key source of revenue for the Kurdish-led forces — dealing a major blow to the group.

Published in Dawn, January 19th, 2026