YPJ Kurdish women fighters seek to preserve unit in Syria’s new structures
In Syria, more than 1,500 fighters from the Kurdish Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) are seeking inclusion in the new state security structures while retaining the possibility of remaining an organized women’s formation. YPJ commander Nowruz Ahmed said Syrian officials rejected a proposal to include them in the army as a separate women’s brigade or battalion.
The Jerusalem Post reported on the negotiations, citing Ahmed’s interview with Reuters published on September 2. She said the proposal to create a separate unit was based on the fighters’ many years of combat experience in the fight against the Islamic State group.
Negotiations with the Interior Ministry
According to Ahmed, the YPJ is discussing possible service in the Syrian Interior Ministry’s special operations forces. The formation asked for its members to be enlisted as a single force, and a response was expected in the coming days, she said.
The YPJ leadership seeks to avoid having its fighters distributed among different units or individually assigned to different regions of the country. A fighter who identified herself as Gevrin Jwan told The Media Line that women feel excluded when men are integrated into the army while no place is found there for them.
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Integration of the Syrian Democratic Forces
The YPJ was formed during the Syrian civil war and fought alongside the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). They took part in campaigns that drove the Islamic State out of significant areas in the north and east of the country.
On August 25, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi announced that the SDF had ceased operating as an independent military force after being integrated into Syrian army brigades. A January integration agreement provided for individual admission of SDF military personnel and security staff into the defense and interior ministries following security vetting.
Syrian Interior Ministry spokesperson Nureddin al-Baba told Kurdish broadcaster Rudaw that YPJ fighters would be welcome in the ministry. However, he did not specify their duties or say whether they would be able to serve as a single formation. According to the source, representatives of Syria’s defense and interior ministries did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment on the negotiations.
