Syria accuses SDF of ‘political blackmail’ after Islamic State prisoners allegedly freed
Syria’s interior ministry has accused the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) of deliberately releasing Islamic State (IS) group members held at al-Shaddadi prison in northeast Syria, describing the move as “political and security blackmail”.
The SDF denied the claim.
On Tuesday, the interior ministry said that Syrian forces recaptured 81 of roughly 120 detainees who escaped.
It said the army had intentionally avoided entering the al-Shaddadi facility during recent military operations against the SDF under an understanding that the Kurdish-led group would later hand the prison to Damascus.
According to the ministry, Syrian commanders contacted mediators and SDF leaders to arrange a transfer of the facility to state internal security forces.
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The SDF rejected the request, the ministry said, before issuing a statement that sought “to mislead international opinion”.
“The Syrian government warns the SDF leadership against taking any reckless steps that would facilitate the escape of [IS] detainees or open prisons for them as a retaliatory measure or as a political pressure tactic,” the ministry said.
The SDF, which continues to control sensitive detention sites despite previously agreeing to hand them to Damascus, disputes the government’s account.
It claims the prison break occurred after an attack by tribal fighters affiliated with the army, alleging government forces lost control of the facility.
The dispute comes amid rising tensions following a ceasefire announcement that included the SDF’s withdrawal from areas west of the Euphrates.
Talks over Hasakah end without deal
On Tuesday, SDF commander Fawza Youssef accused the government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa of failing to uphold the deal.
The SDF controls more than a dozen prisons in the northeast, where around 9,000 IS suspects have been held for years without trial.
Talks on Monday between Sharaa and SDF leader Mazloum Abdi ended without agreement.
According to Al Jazeera, Damascus proposed deploying internal security forces to Hasakah, appointing Abdi as deputy defence minister and naming a governor, alongside removing Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) members from the area.
Sharaa later spoke with US President Donald Trump, with both stressing Syria’s territorial unity and the protection of Kurdish rights.
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