Description: Syria’s Defense Ministry Official Colonel Hassan Abdel – Ghani has announced the military operation led by HTS security forces against armed Alawite militants to be over. The violence left more than 1,500 dead, most of them civilians, and began on Thursday, 06 Mar, after an HTS police patrol was attacked by Alawite militants. After the announcement, interim Syrian President Ahmed al – Sharaa signed a security deal with SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) Commander Mazloum Abdi, according to which the SDF would fall under the Syrian Ministry of Defense and the Kurds would be integrated into the Syrian civil society and political process.
Impact: The end of the military operation which entered spheres of ethnic cleansing lowered the risk of escalation in armed conflicts across Syria. The agreement between SDF and Syria’s interim government could be perceived as an attempt to consolidate power under a unified front since SDF forces are one of the major armed factors for destabilization in the country. The country is still far from conceptualizing long – term system that resembles a government since it’s faced with military pressure from Israel in the Golan Heights and smaller armed fractions which could destabilize the security situation at a moment’s notice. With limited US and Russian military presence, the security situation in the country remains unstable, which could possibly incite regional destabilization if the armed conflicts are reignited.