Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT section in Israel/Occupied Palestine) 31.01.2026
Following the overthrow of Assad by the revolution in a hard process that began in 2011 and overthrew the bloody dictatorship of Assad on December 8, 2024, the Syrian state faces the unsolved tasks of the democratic revolution. Most importantly, the national question and freedom from the imperialists. The democratic tasks: equal rights to all, expelling the imperialists, solving the national question, industrialization, agrarian revolution, can be completed and achieved only by continuing the democratic revolution leading to a workers ‘ revolution supported by the poor peasants’ revolution, which establishes a socialist state as part of the socialist federation of the Middle East.
Without such a revolution, the weak Syrian state will continue to face harsh repression of the different ethnic populations and of the Kurds, who are a separate nation divided among other states in the region (divided between Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and parts of the Caucasus) by the new Syrian army. It also can end with the division of Syria into small states controlled by the US, Israel, and Turkey.
As of today, after weeks of fighting, which led governmental forces to seize the two Kurdish districts of Aleppo (Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh), the Syrian government and the SDF reached an agreement which, in addition to declaring a shaky ceasefire, provides for the de facto dissolution of the SDF, their integration into the regular Syrian army and the return to the state of most of the territories they have controlled since 2011. In many respects, the agreement amounts to a Kurdish surrender.
One crucial element is worth stressing: the SDF are numerically and politically dominated by the YPG (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel, ‘People’s Protection Units’), Kurdish formations linked to the PYD (Partiya Yekîtiya Demokrat, ‘Democratic Union Party’), the Syrian offshoot of the PKK (Partîya Karkerên Kurdistan, ‘Kurdistan Workers’ Party’). The SDF also included Arab, Assyrian, and Turkmen, who, during the fight, deserted the SDF. Syria’s population consists of some 70% Sunni Muslims who live all across the country,Shia Muslims make up around 3% of Syria’s population. A larger minority in Syria are Alawites, including the deposed leader Bashar Assad, who make up around 10% of the population.
In addition to these different Muslim groups, Syria is also home to religious minorities such as Christians, whose denominations include Greek Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox, Maronite, Syrian Catholic, Roman Catholic, and Greek Catholics. There are also many ethnic minorities in Syria, including Druze, Palestinian, Iraqi, Armenian, Greek, Assyrian, Circassian, Mandean, and Turkoman groups. Most of them live in and around Damascus. The Kurds are not simply an ethnic minority but a nation that has been divided among other states. After World War I, the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres promised a Kurdish state, but this was voided by the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which divided Kurdish lands among new national borders in Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. This division suited the rule of British and French imperialists, who divided the entire region between themselves.
The Kurds are an indigenous Indo-European people with a distinct culture and language, inhabiting the mountainous region of Kurdistan across modern-day Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria. With origins tracing back to ancient tribes such as the Medes, the Kurds have maintained a strong identity despite not having achieved a sovereign nation-state. Historically largely autonomous, they faced division after World War I and have struggled for self-rule throughout the 20th century and into the early 21st century.
Many Kurds trace their roots to the Medes, who conquered Nineveh in 612 BCE. Historical records, including Sumerian texts, mention the “land of the Karda”. Following the 7th-century Arab conquests, the Kurds converted to Islam.
Several independent Kurdish dynasties thrived between the 10th and 12th centuries, such as the Shaddadids and Marwanids. The most famous Kurdish historical figure, Saladin, founded the Ayyubid dynasty, which ruled a vast area of the Middle East.
While the Kurds deserve territorial autonomy and even a state, short of a victorious Arab revolution, such a state is not possible; however, territorial autonomy is possible even before the victory of the Arab revolution. The problem is that Kurdish leaders tend to rely on imperialists and on strong local states rather than on the working class and the masses. The 1514 Battle of Chaldiran established an alliance between Kurdish leaders and the Ottoman Empire, allowing for significant regional autonomy.
After World War I, the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres promised a Kurdish state, but this was voided by the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which divided Kurdish lands among new national borders in Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. The division that served the imperialists, France and Britain
Throughout the 20th century, Kurds launched numerous uprisings for independence or autonomy, often met with severe repression, such as the 1988 Halabja chemical attack in Iraq. Following the 1991 Gulf War, Iraqi Kurds established a largely autonomous region, formalized as the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) after 2003.
Over the last few weeks, clashes have erupted between Syrian security forces and the Kurds led by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). What began as military friction initiated by the Kurds quickly turned into a strategic opportunity for the regime of Ahmed al-Sharaa, backed by the US, to reclaim extensive territories and apply heavy pressure on the Kurds to implement the understandings set out in the March 2025 agreement. After taking control of the Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafiyya neighborhoods in Aleppo, and later also Deir Hafer, regime forces succeeded in establishing full control over Deir ez-or province as well as neighborhoods in Raqqa—one of the main cities in northeastern Syria. The SDF simply capitulated.
In fact, this is the most significant territorial takeover since the fall of Assad. In this move, more than 40% of the areas previously controlled by the Kurds—including Syria’s central oil and gas fields—passed into the regime’s hands. The rapid pace of the military advance and its relatively nonviolent character were enabled in part by a shift in the loyalties of the local population: Sunni Arab tribes chose to break away from SDF control, align with regime forces, and assist in transferring territory to al-Sharaa’s forces. Contributing factors also included the support al-Sharaa has been receiving from the United States and the absence of significant international opposition to the move. If during the Assad regime, American imperialism supported the SDF, in this time it prefers to rely on Al- Sharaa.
On January 18, al-Sharaa announced a ceasefire and said the sides were expected to sign a new agreement. The agreement includes, among other things, integrating all institutions in northeastern Syria under Damascus’s rule, the full transfer of oil and gas fields to the government, the transfer of control of border crossings, and the integration of SDF personnel into the Syrian army as individuals—not as organic units —as the Kurds demanded. The regime also pledged to appoint agreed-upon Kurdish representatives to state institutions.
Syria’s Ministry of Interior has ordered the immediate implementation of a new decree granting citizenship to Kurdish minorities, as government forces continue to consolidate control of the country after a rapid offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the north of the country. Interior Minister Anas Khattab issued the decision on Wednesday, mandating that the decree applies to all Kurds residing in Syria and explicitly includes those listed as stateless, the Anadolu news agency reported, citing the Syrian television station Alikhbariah.
While we, as Marxist revolutionaries, support the Kurds’ right to territorial autonomy and not only cultural rights, and their right to a free, socialist Kurdistan, this can be achieved only through the completion of the democratic revolution, leading to a socialist revolution as part of the Socialist Federation of the Middle East.
Al-Sharaa is afraid of the breakup of Syria and uses force to maintain the unity of Syria under the central government. He managed to repress the desire of the Kurds for autonomy, and by thi,s he sent a message to other minorities. However, he increases the danger that Syria will fall apart as a large part of the population accepts his rule only because of fear and will join the powers that will attack Syria, like Israel, which wants to see small, weak states instead of Syria.
An independent Kurdistan requires the victory of the Arab revolution!
Complete the democratic revolution!
Yes, to the autonomy of the Kurds in the provinces where they are the majority!
For free red Kurdistan!
Break the subordination to the United States, Turkey and Israel!
For a socialist and independent Syria as part of the Arab revolution!