RAQQA — Scores of former members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) lined up outside a building in Raqqa city on a crisp, sunny morning last week, waiting to settle their status with the Syrian government. Many wore farwa s, the traditional, wool-lined cloaks warding off the winter chill as they waited for hours. Most were men, while inside the settlement center—a building formerly used by the SDF-backed Autonomous Administration—a dozen women waited to finish their paperwork in a crowded room. The scene at the settlement center pointed to one important question for the northeastern Syrian city’s transition from SDF control to that of the Syrian government: what the future looks like for former SDF-affiliated fighters, security officers and officials, as well as their relations with their communities. As of February 3, more than 2,800 people have settled their status in Raqqa, Mustafa al-Issa, the manager of Raqqa settlement center, told Syria Direct . Damascus took control of Raqqa province and neighboring Deir e-Zor on January 18 after local Arab tribes rose up against the SDF. At the time, government forces were advancing against the SDF after negotiations to integrate it and its affiliated institutions into the state stalled . Raqqa city’s new reality marks the fourth time the provincial capital has changed hands since the Syrian revolution against ousted president Bashar al-Assad began in 2011. Armed opposition forces first took control of Raqqa in 2013, months before losing it to the Islamic State (IS), which declared the city the capital of its self-proclaimed caliphate the following year. The SDF, backed by US-led coalition forces, drove IS out of the city in 2017 . A week after the latest changeover, Syria’s Ministry of Interior opened the first settlement center in Raqqa on January 26. Similar centers have also opened in Aleppo and Deir e-Zor . “One can [now] move about at ease, it’s better to come make a settlement,” Ali, 39, told Syria Direct outside the center in Raqqa last Thursday. Ali, who asked to be identified only by his first name, joined the SDF in 2017 and was injured the same year when an IS sniper shot him in the back, leaving him in a wheelchair. “The settlement [process] was excellent—may God reward them with good and bless them,” he added. Former members of the SDF, Internal Security Forces (Asayish) or Autonomous Administration who complete the settlement process—which involves bringing any identification documents and equipment received from the former authorities—receive a document that allows them to move around the city without being stopped at checkpoints. A woman at the Raqqa settlement center shows her completed paperwork, 29/1/2026 (Natacha Danon/Syria Direct) “The committee responsible for settlement work was very polite, ethical and respectful,” echoed Hazem, 24, a former member of the Asayish who asked to be identified only by his first name. “As for revenge, I do not have any fear or anything
Originally reported by Syria Direct. Published on ABN12.