Intel: Turkey’s invasion of northeast Syria spurs Kurdish unity

Buckling to popular and US pressure, the main Syrian Kurdish opposition umbrella group known as the Kurdish National Council (KNC) has agreed to reopen its offices in northeastern Syria. The move is intended to pave the way for Kurdish unity in future negotiations with the Syrian regime. 

The group has historically been at odds with the left-leaning Democratic Union Party (PYD) that leads the US-protected autonomous administration in northeastern Syria. The KNC has long charged that it was barred from operating freely in the Kurdish-majority region with many of its officials either jailed or disappeared.

Mazlum Kobane, the top commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), hailed Sunday’s decision as “an important confidence-building step.” The charismatic commander has been at the forefront of the reconciliation drive. He told Al-Monitor recently that all the Syrian Kurdish parties need to be represented in talks with the regime.

Why it matters:  A thaw is important for several reasons, among them blunting popular resentment over the Syria Kurdish parties’ continued squabbles at a time when the northeast has been attacked and invaded by Turkey.