Ceasefire between Turkey and US-backed rebels extended, State Dept says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A ceasefire between Turkey and the U.S.-backed Kurdish Syrian forces (SDF) around the northern Syrian city of Manbij has been extended until the end of this week, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.

Washington brokered an initial ceasefire last week after fighting that broke out earlier this month as rebel groups advanced on Damascus and overthrew the rule of Bashar al-Assad.

"We continue to engage with the SDF, with Turkey about a path forward," Miller said at a regular press briefing, adding that the U.S. would like the ceasefire to be extended for as long as possible.

"We don't want to see any party take advantage of the current unstable situation to advance their own narrow interests at the expense of the broader Syrian national interest," he added.

The SDF is the main ally in a U.S. coalition against Islamic State militants in Syria. It is spearheaded by YPG militia, a group that Ankara sees as an extension of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants that it outlaws and who have fought the Turkish state for 40 years.

NATO allies Washington and Ankara supported Syrian rebels during Syria's 13-year civil war, but their interests clashed when it came to the SDF faction.

Washington has been closely watching any moves by Turkey or Turkish-backed forces on the Kurdish-controlled town of Kobani, but Miller said the U.S. understands Turkish concerns over the PKK, which both Washington and Ankara call a terrorist group.

"We understand the very legitimate concerns that Turkey has about the presence of foreign fighters inside Syria, and so we're talking to them about those concerns and trying to find a path forward," Miller said.

SDF commander Mazloum Abdi expressed on Tuesday the group's readiness to present a proposal that establishes a demilitarized zone in the northern city of Kobani with the redeployment of security forces under U.S. supervision and presence.

He said in a statement on X that the proposal aims to address Turkey's security concerns and ensure permanent stability in the area.



(Reporting by Simon Lewis, Daphne Psaledakis, Jasper Ward and Menna Alaa El Din; Editing by Leslie Adler and Daniel Wallis)