On Saturday, former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo posted on X that “turning our backs on our Kurdish allies would be a moral and strategic disaster.”

Pompeo’s post was in response to U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, who said in a post on X that there is a “strong and growing bipartisan interest in the U.S. Senate regarding the deteriorating situation in Syria. There is strong consensus that we must protect the Kurds who were there for us in destroying the ISIS caliphate, as well as many other groups.”

Heavy clashes between Syrian interim government forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have been taking place in northeastern and northwestern Syria since January 6. Government troops have cut off the town of Kobani and seized some areas in the Hasakah Governorate, including the al-Hol camp, which hosts thousands of ISIS families.

They have also taken over previously SDF-held areas in Raqqa and Deir ez Zor.

On January 20, Damascus announced a four-day ceasefire based on the SDF-Damascus agreement of January 18 in order to reduce tensions and ensure the immediate resumption of talks between the SDF and Damascus.

The ceasefire, which was set to end on January 24, was extended by Syria’s Ministry of Defense for 15 days. “This extension of the ceasefire comes in support of the U.S. operation to evacuate ISIS prisoners from SDF prisons to Iraq,” Syria’s Ministry of Defense said.

The SDF also confirmed that it had reached an agreement to extend the ceasefire for 15 days through international mediation, while dialogue with Damascus continues.

“Our forces affirm their commitment to the agreement and their dedication to respecting it, which contributes to de-escalation, the protection of civilians, and the creation of the necessary conditions for stability,” the SDF said in a statement.

“The U.S. should play a role as a mediator, recognizing that it is in its interests to keep its two partners on the ground in Syria – the Damascus government and the SDF – in good relations and help defuse the current tensions between them,” Mohammed A. Salih, Senior Fellow at Foreign Policy Research Institute, told Kurdistan Chronicle.

“It should make it clear to Damascus that further military actions against the SDF and Kurds and, by extension, atrocities against local Kurds and the release of jihadis en masse, is an abuse of the trust that President Donald Trump has extended to the new Syrian government and leader. The new Syria should be a civilized state for all Syrians with rights and dignity, and not one routinely showing troubling extremist behavior.”