ALEPPO, Syria (AP) Scores of U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters left two neighborhoods in Syrias northern city of Aleppo Friday as part of a deal with the central government in Damascus, which is expanding its authority in the country.
The fighters left the predominantly Kurdish northern neighborhoods of Sheikh Maksoud and Achrafieh, which had been under the control of Kurdish fighters in Aleppo over the past decade.
The deal is a boost to an agreement reached last month between Syrias interim government and the Kurdish-led authority that controls the countrys northeast. The deal could eventually lead to the merger of the main U.S.-backed force in Syria into the Syrian army.
The withdrawal of fighters from the U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces came a day after dozens of prisoners from both sides were freed in Aleppo, Syrias largest city.
Syrias state news agency, SANA, reported that government forces were deployed along the road that SDF fighters will use to move between Aleppo and areas east of the Euphrates River, where the Kurdish-led force controls nearly a quarter of Syria.
Sheikh Maksoud and Achrafieh had been under SDF control since 2015 and remained so even when forces of ousted President Bashar Assad captured Aleppo in late 2016. The two neighborhoods remained under SDF control when forces loyal to current interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa captured the city in November, and days later captured the capital, Damascus, removing Assad from power.
After being marginalized for decades under the rule of the Assad family rule, the deal signed last month promises Syrias Kurds constitutional rights, including using and teaching their language, which were banned for decades.
Hundreds of thousands of Kurds, who were displaced during Syrias nearly 14-year civil war, will return to their homes. Thousands of Kurds living in Syria who have been deprived of nationality for decades under Assad will be given the right of citizenship, according to the agreement.
Kurds made up 10% of the countrys prewar population of 23 million. Kurdish leaders say they dont want full autonomy with their own government and parliament. They want decentralization and room to run their day-to day-affairs.
叙利亚阿勒颇（美联社）——星期五，数十名得到美国支持的库尔德武装人员离开叙利亚北部城市阿勒颇的两个街区，这是他们与大马士革中央政府达成的一项协议的一部分，大马士革政府正在扩大其在该国的权力。
这些武装分子离开了过去十年中一直被阿勒颇库尔德武装分子控制的谢赫·马库苏德和阿赫拉菲耶两处主要居住库尔德人的北部街区。
此项协议是对上个月叙利亚临时政府和掌握该国东北部控制权的库尔德人领导机构之间达成的协议的进一步推动。该协议最终可能导致美国在叙利亚的主要支持力量并入叙利亚军队。
叙利亚民主力量（由美国支持、库尔德人领导）的战士撤离行动，发生在叙利亚最大城市阿勒颇释放了数十名双方囚犯之后的一天。
叙利亚国家通讯社SANA报道称，政府军已沿叙利亚民主力量（SDF）战士将从阿勒颇前往幼发拉底河东岸地区（库尔德领导力量控制着叙利亚近四分之一的领土）的路线部署了兵力。
自2015年以来，Sheikh Maksoud和Achrafieh一直处于叙利亚民主力量（SDF）的控制之下，即使在2016年末被推翻的巴沙尔·阿萨德总统的军队占领了阿勒颇之后，情况依然如此。当现任临时总统艾哈迈德·阿勒沙拉（Ahmad al-Sharaa）的忠实部队在11月占领这座城市时，这两个街区仍然处于SDF的控制之下，数天之后，这些部队又占领了首都大马士革，从而结束了阿萨德总统的统治。
在阿萨德家族统治下被边缘化数十年后，上个月签署的协议承诺给予叙利亚库尔德人“宪法权利”，包括使用和教授其语言，这项语言已被禁止数十年。
数以万计的库尔德人，在叙利亚近14年的内战期间流离失所，将返回家园。根据协议，成千上万在阿萨德政权统治下被剥夺公民身份数十年的叙利亚库尔德人将被赋予公民权利。
库尔德人占该国战前2300万人口的10%。库尔德领导人表示，他们不希望拥有自己的政府和议会而获得完全的自治权。他们希望实现权力下放，并拥有管理日常事务的空间。