Throughout seven years of war, the Kurds of Syria’s north have been a wildcard. Their loyalties have remained uncertain and their push for autonomy buffeted by a raging conflict that has consumed almost all before it.
As a showdown nears in the north-west of the country, home to a prominent Kurdish enclave until earlier this year – and now central to the outcome of the war – the Kurds are quietly renewing their claim. Dozens of Kurdish militants who had fought with US forces in the fight against Islamic State have now allied with Syrian regime forces in Idlib province for what is likely to be the war’s final, bloody battle.
The presence of the Kurds in the fight for Idlib adds a new dimension to a clash that has drawn in every player in the long, savage war. The alliance has been kept under wraps both by Syrian officials, who have been wary of Kurdish ambitions throughout the war, and by Kurdish forces themselves, who remain nominally allied to Washington in the fight against Isis.
A last-ditch diplomatic attempt to avert a fight for Idlib province, where up to3 million people are crammed into over-stretched towns and cities, is being held in Tehran on Friday. Russia and Iran, both backers of the Syrian regime, and Turkey, a backer of many groups who stood against the Syrian leader, will attempt to thrash out a deal that prevents what aid agencies say will be a bloodbath if, as expected, a full-scale assault is launched.
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