“SDF” Launches De-weaponization Campaigns in Towns at Rural Manbij City

Troops under the “Syrian Democratic Forces” inside the city of Manbij – August 15, 2016 (Enab Baladi)

Troops under the “Syrian Democratic Forces” inside the city of Manbij – August 15, 2016 (Enab Baladi)

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The “Syrian Democratic Forces” (SDF) has launched several de-weaponization campaigns in the city of Manbij and its rural parts, as to disarm the area’s Arab people, in addition to a number of arrests that targeted civilians on various charges.

Enab Baladi’s reporter in rural Aleppo has today, Wednesday (September 19), said that an armed “SDF” group has stormed the town of al-Qubbah, east-northern countryside of Manbij, at down, where it implemented arrest raids and carful checks of the places where personal arms could be found.

Quoting sources from the town, the reporter pointed out that thefts and robberies of civilians’ possession accompanied the arrest campaign.

“SDF” refuted the accusation, and early this year it stated that “the Syrian regime and the Euphrates Shield’s factions are working day and night as to disrupt the civil peace in Manbij and to trigger chaos through activating the sleeper cells.”

“SDF” controlled Manbij in August 2017, with a direct support from the United States of America.

In the past month, protests against SDF where recurrent, disapproving forced recruitment and the arrest that are targeting young people in the area.

The sources said that “the campaign basically aims to disarm Arabs, similar to what happened in Raqqa a few days ago, and the pretext is former cooperation with the Islamic State.”

According to the sources, the town of al-Qubbah that is witnessing raids serve as “a fulcrum for Arabs in the area of Manbij, and SDF currently wants to defang them by disarming them of the weaponry left for them since ISIS last retreat.”

They explained that the town is a home for about ten thousand civilians, some of whom are displaced from the city of Raqqa and its countryside.

Early in June, Ankara and Washington arrived at a “road map” for Manbij, which includes reinforcing security and stability in Manbij, as stated by the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu.

The Turkish-American plan for the city was supposed to be implemented according to specific stages, starting with the retreat of the Kurdish “Units” commanders, to be followed with Turkish and American army and intelligence personal tackling the supervision task at the city, 45 days after the June 13th meeting that brought together Çavuşoğlu with his counterpart Mike Pompeo.

Concerning the plan’s third stage, it provides for the formation of a local administration in 60 days, as well as military and local councils to provide the city with services and safety according to the population’s ethnic distribution within the area.

However, none of the “Road Map’s” terms are implemented, except for the Turkish and the American patrols at the border separating the areas of the “Euphrates Shield” and “SDF” controlled areas.

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  4. Why did Syrian Democratic Forces give in to popular demands in Manbij, suspending forced recruitment?

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