The Syrian government is preparing to take control of the YPG-run prisons, with more detainees released over the weekend and Monday.
According to local officials, several waves of releases have been carried out in recent weeks in detention facilities, marking progress in implementing the Jan. 29 agreement with the central authorities in Damascus.
In total, nearly 1,500 detainees have been released in four successive waves, Ahmed al-Hilali, spokesperson for the Syrian presidential team, said Monday in an interview with Al-Ikhbariya TV.
He added that around 500 individuals remain in detention, noting that their cases will be reviewed in the near future.
According to al-Hilali, the issue is being addressed primarily from a humanitarian perspective, while also forming part of a broader process aimed at gradually integrating administrative and security structures controlled by the YPG into the Syrian state.
Measures to that end were underway to transfer prisoners currently under YPG control to authorities affiliated with the Syrian justice and interior ministries.
A new wave of releases is expected in the coming days, without preconditions, according to the same source.
A large number of detainees were arrested during the years of the region’s control by the YPG, the Syrian offshoot of the terrorist PKK, often on accusations related to their opposition to the Assad regime or to the policies of the “local administration.”
On Jan. 30, 2026, Syrian authorities announced that a comprehensive agreement had been reached with the YPG, aimed at ending internal divisions in the country and initiating a new phase of political and institutional integration.
