The Joint Force affiliated with the Syrian National Army (SNA) conducted a prisoner exchange operation through the Aoun al-Dadat crossing, which separates the SNA-controlled areas in the countryside of Jarablus city from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) controlled areas in the countryside of Manbij city, east of Aleppo.

According to a statement by the Joint Force obtained by Enab Baladi, the exchange operation took place on Friday, April 19, and under which the SDF released four detainees who had been held for years, including some who had been sentenced to death.

In return, the Syrian National Army released the bodies of four SDF fighters who had previously been killed during a failed attempt to storm the front line in the area of Baslahaya, along the contact lines between the two sides, the statement said.

The Joint Force statement noted that the operation was initiated with the aim of liberating a number of forcibly disappeared individuals in SDF prisons.

Today, Saturday, a video recording was circulated via the Telegram application (widely used in Syria), showing the meeting of the commander of the Sultan Suleiman Shah faction, Mohammad al-Jasim, known as “Abu Amsha,” speaking to those released as part of the exchange operation.

The Sultan Suleiman Shah (Al-Amshat) faction is one of the components of the Joint Force and is part of the formations of the Syrian National Army.

The SDF or media outlets close to it have not yet commented on the exchange operation at the time of reporting this news.

At different times, the Syrian National Army (backed by Turkey) and the SDF (backed by the United States east of the Euphrates, and by Russia to the west) conduct prisoner exchanges or other operations to exchange the bodies of fighters.

In March 2021, an operation was conducted to exchange the bodies of fighters from both sides in the north of Raqqa province, and Hawar news agency (close to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria) published a video recording today, showing the exchange in the presence of the Russian Red Cross, the Russian military police, and leaders from both sides.

The front lines between the two sides witness near-daily shelling, as well as limited infiltration and assault attempts carried out by both parties on the front lines from time to time, resulting in casualties on both sides.

These exchange operations are not limited to the SDF and the National Army, as the latter has previously conducted exchanges with the Syrian regime near the city of al-Bab, east of Aleppo.

Also, military factions in northern Syria have carried out several exchange operations with the regime and its allied militias, following the commencement of the Moscow agreement and the cessation of battles on March 6, 2020.

In August 2020, the security forces of the Syrian regime released six women and a girl from its prisons in a prisoner exchange operation with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).