Syrian Interim Government statement on clash with SDF forces.
According to Sputnik, Damascus reacted to the clashes between the forces affiliated with the interim government and the SDF forces.
The Syrian Ministry of Defense announced in a statement: “In the SDF attack on our forces in the Ma’dan area on the outskirts of Raqqa (northeastern Syria), two of these forces were killed.”
The statement said: “The SDF took control of several points following heavy fire with various weapons in the Ma’dan area on the outskirts of Raqqa. Our forces responded to the heavy fire and launched a counterattack, during which they managed to recapture the lost positions.”
The Syrian Ministry of Defense continued: “We hold the SDF responsible for the consequences of the daily attacks on the positions of the Syrian army.”
On Thursday morning, news sources reported heavy clashes between the SDF forces and the Syrian interim government in eastern Raqqa, and announced that these clashes were concentrated in the area of the village of “Ghanem al-Ali.”
Syrian sources also reported the presence of ISIS elements alongside the Syrian interim government forces in the areas of conflict.
Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and Ahmed al-Shara, head of the Syrian interim government, recently met in Damascus with US special envoy Tom Barak and US Central Command (CENTCOM) commander Brad Cooper in an effort by Washington to advance the negotiations.
The SDF forces and the security forces of the self-proclaimed Kurdish government, which were formed in areas under SDF influence in northeastern Syria, number nearly 100,000.
Abdi and al-Shara signed an agreement on March 10 that includes several articles, including the integration of civil and military institutions affiliated with the self-proclaimed Kurdish government into national institutions by the end of the year, but some differences of opinion between the parties have so far hindered progress in implementing this agreement.