Syria Syrian government takes over prison with IS fighters
The Syrian transitional government has taken over another prison holding suspected Islamic State (IS) terrorists from the Kurdish-dominated militia SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces).
23.01.2026, 13:26
SDA
This was announced by the Syrian Interior Ministry, as reported by the state news agency Sana.
With around 1,500 prisoners, the al-Aktan prison near the former IS stronghold of al-Rakka in north-eastern Syria is considered one of the largest detention centers for former IS fighters of various nationalities.
Supply bottlenecks in the Kurdish stronghold of Kobane
Hundreds of SDF fighters who previously guarded the prison were taken to the SDF-controlled town of Kobane on the Turkish border, according to unanimous reports from both sides.
Once besieged by IS, the Kurdish-majority town of Kobane has been surrounded by forces of the transitional government for days. According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the humanitarian situation there is now tense due to supply shortages.
Office for the Protection of the Constitution fears escape of IS extremists
According to Sana, the Ministry of the Interior in Damascus has announced that the conditions and basis of detention of each individual prisoner in al-Aktan will now be reviewed.
The SDF had successfully fought the IS terrorists during the civil war with US support and brought large parts of north-eastern Syria under their control and established an autonomous administration there.
Thousands of IS fighters and their relatives were held in prisons and camps there for years. Since the fall of long-term ruler Bashar al-Assad by a rebel alliance led by the Islamist group HTS a year ago, the pressure on the Kurds to give up their autonomy has been growing. The government in Damascus recently launched an offensive and pushed the Kurds back by force.
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution fears that the Syrian government offensive could allow extremists with German passports to go free.
Kurds distrust Islamists in Damascus
According to an agreement reached last spring, both the SDF fighters and the administration in the Kurdish-run areas were to be integrated into national structures. However, implementation failed - not least due to the Kurds' mistrust of the Islamist leadership in Damascus. Their fighters openly show contempt for the Kurdish women's units, for example, and have carried out massacres among civilians from other minorities in Syria in recent months.
Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa wants to unite the country and, in particular, bring the oil fields in north-eastern Syria under the control of Damascus. He has offered himself to the US government as a partner in the fight against IS and promised equal rights to the Kurds, who were discriminated against under al-Assad's rule. Washington is now siding with Damascus. Many Kurds see this as a betrayal.
A ceasefire agreed on Tuesday expires on Saturday evening. The Kurdish side said it was hoping for an extension of the talks mediated by the USA in order to reach an agreement with Damascus.
