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The YPG terrorist organization has expanded its tunnel networks in northern Syria in recent months, violating a March 10 agreement with Damascus, according to reports and satellite imagery cited by Turkish media.
Excavation work has accelerated in cities east of the Euphrates, particularly Raqqa and Tabqa, where dozens of tunnel entrances have reportedly been discovered in parks, gardens and near residential areas. Local sources reported that some of the tunnels extend for several kilometers and may even run beneath hospitals, according to the Sabah newspaper on Wednesday.
At least 14 new tunnel entrances have been identified in Raqqa alone, eight of them around the city’s central stadium and public parks, the newspaper reported. Photos obtained by locals appear to show YPG members digging near hospitals and covering worksites with tarpaulins and tents.
The tunnels come as tensions mount between the YPG and the Syrian government. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s administration has warned the group to disarm and integrate into the national army, but the YPG has instead reinforced its positions with U.S.-supplied military vehicles and field fortifications, the report said.
The YPG has long relied on tunnel systems for defense and movement during military operations. The group has previously used civilian areas as cover, a tactic that new tunnels are designed to continue, according to Sabah.
Local reports suggest the Syrian army is preparing for a possible operation against YPG-controlled areas if the group refuses to comply with Damascus’ demands.
Since Syrian leader Bashar Assad was ousted in December 2024, the new interim government in Damascus has been working to restore stability across the country after nearly 25 years of authoritarian rule.
With U.S. support under the pretext of fighting Daesh, the YPG seized large swaths of northern and eastern Syria during the civil war, occupying key oil, water and agricultural resources. Turkish cross-border operations have since reduced their grip, but the group remains entrenched in several areas.
Under the March deal, the YPG would merge with the new Syrian national army. The agreement, which is expected to be implemented by the end of the year, would also bring all border crossings with Iraq and Türkiye, as well as airports and oil fields in the northeast, under the central government’s control. Detention centers housing thousands of Daesh members, now guarded by the YPG, would also come under government control.
However, the YPG’s insistence on entering the army as one bloc has stalled the process, and there have been scattered outbreaks of violence. The group has also been making statements calling for autonomy and thus endangering the territorial integrity of Syria.
Ankara views the YPG as an extension of the PKK terrorist group, which recently announced its dissolution and began a disarmament process that will end 40 years of bloodshed in Türkiye. The YPG insists it is not a party to the disarmament.
Türkiye, which developed cordial ties with the transitional government, has pledged to continue supporting Syria’s political unity and territorial integrity, providing training and technical support upon request from Damascus to strengthen its fight against terrorist groups. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed that Türkiye “will not allow terrorists to drag Syria back into chaos and instability.”
Ankara is closely monitoring the integration of the YPG into the Syrian army. Turkish officials have said earlier that this development will be decisive for Syria’s long-term security architecture.
The YPG’s push for decentralization and symbolic changes, such as altering the country’s name, is widely seen by Türkiye as part of a broader effort to entrench separatist control in Syria’s north.
Erdoğan on Tuesday said Türkiye was the “guarantee for the security and peace of the Kurds in Syria as it is that of other communities.”
Speaking on the occasion of the Malazgirt (Manzikert) Victory’s 954th anniversary in Muş province, Erdoğan said: “We defend permanent peace throughout the whole region. We aim for problems to be solved through dialogue and diplomacy.”
“Let no one forget that we, as Turks, Arabs and Kurds, will live side by side in this region until the apocalypse.”
Those seeking new foreign patrons will ultimately lose, he added.
Ankara and Damascus also signed a memorandum of understanding for joint training and military consultancy earlier this month and technical visits are planned in this regard. With security and counterterrorism at the forefront, Türkiye views its cooperation with Damascus as central to ensuring a stable, sovereign and territorially unified Syria.
