Syria Kurdish Rights Decree 2026: President al-Sharaa Grants Citizenship and Language Status
President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued the Syria Kurdish Rights Decree 2026, granting national language status and citizenship to Kurds after clashes in Aleppo.
The guns have fallen silent, but the political battlefield is just heating up. Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree on Friday formally recognising Kurdish as a national language and restoring citizenship to tens of thousands of Kurds. The move follows a week of bloody clashes in Aleppo that left at least 23 people dead and triggered a massive displacement of civilians.
Syria Kurdish Rights Decree 2026: Language and Citizenship Redefined
The decree, announced on January 16, 2026, marks a significant shift in Syria's ethnic policy. It elevates Kurdish to a national language alongside Arabic and allows its instruction in schools. Crucially, it reverses a 1962 census policy in Hasakah province that had rendered many Kurds stateless for decades.
Furthermore, the government has declared Newroz, the Kurdish New Year, a paid national holiday. By banning ethnic discrimination and requiring inclusive messaging from state institutions, al-Sharaa is attempting to consolidate power following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, aiming to unify a country fractured by 14 years of war.
Military Redeployment: SDF Withdraws from Aleppo
While diplomacy takes center stage, the military landscape is also changing. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), led by Mazloum Abdi, agreed to withdraw from Deir Hafer and other pockets in Aleppo governorate. Syrian state forces entered the town on Saturday to establish full control, as SDF units began their redeployment east of the Euphrates River.
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