Syrian Democratic Forces Dissolved as Mazloum Abdi Joins Damascus Government

According to a report by the official Syrian news agency SANA on August 28, 2026, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued Decree No. 164, appointing Mustafa Khalil Abdi, known as General Mazloum Abdi, as a presidential adviser. This followed Abdi’s announcement at the People’s Palace in Damascus regarding the total dissolution of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). For over a decade, this Washington-backed coalition served as the primary ground force against ISIS in the Euphrates basin. Under the agreement, the SDF's veteran brigades are being integrated into the Syrian national army. Amine Ayoub, a policy analyst, writing for Ynet, characterized the development not as a peaceful reconciliation, but as a forced capitulation by Kurdish leadership under military and geopolitical pressure. Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the founder of Jabhat al-Nusra, has effectively consolidated control over Syria’s agricultural and oil-rich regions. While some Western diplomats have framed the move as a step toward regional stabilization, critics warn that it marks the end of Kurdish autonomy and the consolidation of an Islamist-led state in Damascus, posing potential long-term security risks for the region and Israel.