Syria’s ambassador to the UN urged the Security Council on Thursday to support a vision of the country’s future based on national unity rather than division, as tensions between Damascus and Kurdish-led forces reshape the balance of power in the country’s north-east.
“There is no victor and no loser,” Ibrahim Olabi said. “Rather, it is the victory of all Syrians – Arabs, Kurds, Armenians, Turkmen, Circassians, Muslims, Christians and Jews.”
His comments came as a fragile ceasefire took hold between President Ahmad Al Shara’s government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, after clashes erupted this month over demands that the SDF integrate its fighters and remaining enclaves into state control.
Mr Olabi acknowledged decades of marginalisation faced by Syria’s Kurdish population and said their inclusion in state institutions marked a turning point.
“We are fully aware of the suffering endured by our Syrian Kurdish compatriots for decades due to marginalisation and denial of rights,” he said, adding that Kurds were now part of the country’s rebuilt political framework “just like all other Syrian communities”.
Under a ceasefire announced on Tuesday, Damascus gave the SDF four days to present a plan for merging its remaining territories. The government said its forces would not enter two SDF-held cities if an agreement could be reached.
Areas seized by government forces from SDF control in recent weeks have included Syria’s largest oilfields, key agricultural land and detention facilities holding suspected ISIS militants.
Once Washington’s closest ally in Syria, the SDF has seen its position weakened as US President Donald Trump deepened ties with Mr Al Shara’s government. The Kurdish-led force has since retreated largely to Kurdish-majority areas in the north-east.
US deputy ambassador to the UN Tammy Bruce said the situation had “fundamentally changed” following Damascus’s decision to join the global coalition against ISIS late last year.
She said Washington was working with both the Syrian government and the SDF to reintegrate the north-east “in a dignified manner” and transfer responsibility for detention camps and security operations to state authorities.
Israel’s ambassador Danny Danon warned the council against judging Syria’s new leadership by rhetoric alone.
“In recent weeks, we have received disturbing reports from Kurdish areas in northern and eastern Syria, reports of forced displacement, brutal abuse and killings,” said Mr Danon.
“The Kurdish people are not a footnote. They stood between us, between the world and ISIS. They fought, they suffered, and they paid a heavy price so others would not have to.
“To remain silent as they are being persecuted now would be moral failure.”
