Mazloum Abdi, from champion of Syria Kurdish autonomy to presidential adviser

Mazloum Abdi, who has been appointed as adviser to Syria's presidency, is shifting into politics after years as a Kurdish military leader heading internationally backed fighters who battled Islamic State group jihadists in Syria.

From joining the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in 1990 through to announcing the dissolution of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) this week, Abdi has amassed significant influence among Syria's Kurds.

For more than a decade, he headed the SDF, the de facto army of the Kurds' semi-autonomous administration in the north and northeast which they carved out after seizing territory from IS during Syria's civil war.

During that time, Abdi also forged strong ties with several countries, including the United States, the SDF's main backer.

Born in northern Syria's Kobane area near the Turkish border in 1967, Abdi was for years seen in fatigues -- a modest, mildly spoken but savvy military leader, more comfortable in his native Kurdish than Arabic.

Since Syria's new authorities took power in 2024 after ousting longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad after nearly 14 years of war, Abdi has had to make major compromises.

After arduous negotiations with new President Ahmed al-Sharaa -- sometimes under fire -- he agreed in January to an integration deal that ended Kurdish aspirations for autonomy.

Nanar Hawach, Syria analyst at the International Crisis Group, said Abdi was among "PKK veterans" who established the People's Protection Units, or YPG, in Syria, in an announcement that came after the civil war erupted in 2011.

The PKK, considered a "terrorist" group by Turkey and its Western allies, waged a deadly insurgency against Ankara for decades before last year formally renouncing its armed struggle.

Abdi rose to prominence in Syria during the battle for Kobane, now symbolic for the Kurds after their 2015 victory there over IS jihadists following months of fierce battles.

- 'Pragmatism' -

The SDF was formed that year at the instigation of the United States, with the YPG as its backbone but also involving Arab fighters.

During the civil war, Abdi maintained a careful balancing act between various sides including Washington, an ally of Turkey which launched cross-border offensives targeting Syrian Kurdish fighters it views as PKK offshoots.

Abdi also held cautious ties with the Assad government, which accused the Kurds of "separatism", and with its ally Russia.

After Assad's ouster, Abdi showed openness to the new authorities and started negotiations as the balance of power shifted and as Western powers including Washington moved to support Sharaa.

Abdi, who studied engineering in Aleppo, was reportedly close to the PKK's now-jailed founder Abdullah Ocalan and took part in clashes inside Turkey, leading to his arrest in Syria under Hafez al-Assad in the 1990s.

Abdi has said he later went to Europe then to Iraq, where the PKK long had its rear base in the country's north.

He was identified in the presidential decree as Mustafa Khalil Abdi, and has been known by other names including Ferhat Abdi Sahin and Mazloum Kobane.

He is on Turkey's list of "wanted terrorists" with a bounty on his head and an Interpol red notice out for him.

In 2023, bombardment blamed on Turkey hit Sulaimaniyah airport in Iraqi Kurdistan while he was there.

The appointment announced Friday marks a new phase for Abdi as Syria's Kurds seek to play a role in building the country's future.

One of Abdi's confidants told AFP that the Kurdish leader "combines political flexibility and pragmatism to achieve the goals and legitimate rights of his people's cause".

He looks for "what is possible and what can maybe be built upon in the future", they said, requesting anonymity. 

str-lar-lg/phz