Last month, representatives of the Kurdish-led administration in northeastern Syria went to Damascus with a potential road map for the future of the region. After US President Donald Trump's announcement in December that his troops were leaving, the Syrian Kurds, concerned that the departure of American soldiers would be swiftly followed by the arrival of Turkish ones, met the Assad regime in Russian-mediated talks, armed with a plan.
Their proposal was this: that the Syrian Democratic Forces, the majority of whom are fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, would be incorporated into the Syrian army and would be tasked with protecting the northern border with Turkey. The Kurdish region would become legitimately autonomous, fly its own flag and there would be a fairer redistribution of the country's wealth.
The plan was the SDF's attempt to snatch victory from the jaws of apparent defeat. For as the fight against ISIS has wound down, the Kurdish-led coalition has found itself politically manoeuvring in smaller and smaller circles. As other players in the Syrian war, most of whom have more leverage and power, set out their own positions, the Kurds have been forced to carve out a policy in the small spaces between the political lines drawn by others. With the US withdrawal and the threat of a Turkish assault, their position has been weakened and they are running out of options.
Successive Turkish attacks have shrunk the territory the Syrian Kurds hold. For both the Americans and the Russians, protecting Kurdish ambitions has taken a very much secondary (indeed tertiary) place to, for the US, defeating ISIS and getting troops out, and for the Russians, protecting the military base at Khmeimim and the Assad regime.
The Kurds have been forced to carve out a policy in the small spaces between the political lines drawn by others
That leaves an uncertain future for the SDF and the border region. The Turks have made it clear they do not want a contiguous Kurdish-controlled area along the border because of the YPG’s affiliation with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which it designates a terrorist organisation operating inside Turkish borders. Ankara’s position is that it would carve out a safe zone on the Syrian side of the border, which it would police alone and clear of the YPG. As defence minister Hulusi Akar told the Munich security conference last week: “Only Turkey should be present”.
Other players, however, have different ideas and have been outlining the over the past week.
It started with Russia in the resort of Sochi last week, where the presidents of Turkey, Iran and Russia had gathered to discuss Syria’s fate. The Russians made it clear that any military presence on the Syrian border must have the approval of Damascus. Without the assent of Damascus, Russia will not agree to allow the SDF to patrol the border.
Then, a few days later at the Munich Security Conference, the secretary-general of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the bloc's position was that neither European nor Turkish forces should be deployed at the border. Instead, he said, the SDF should do it as they are "indigenous forces".
The position was complicated somewhat, because he called on Bashar Al Assad to “moderate” his position, apparently referring to the oft-repeated statement from Damascus that all territory must be brought back under Syrian control. Reading between the lines, it appeared he meant that Damascus should leave the area under Kurdish control and allow the SDF to patrol it.
On Sunday Damascus weighed in, with Mr Al Assad addressing his parliament and warning the Kurds that “nobody will protect you except your state”. He added: “If you do not prepare yourselves to defend your country, you will be nothing but slaves.” That suggests the regime will expect the Syrian Kurds to fight for the state, most likely against Turkey, but in what capacity remains unclear.
And then this week came something of a fatal blow for the Kurds, when the American commander of the US-led coalition against ISIS said that if the SDF allied themselves with the regime or Russia, the US would be forced to sever its military assistance.
All of this leaves the SDF in a precarious position. With the US leaving, the SDF is at the mercy of an attack by Turkey. Only the regime can protect them from that but for that to happen, the regime would exact a price, which is almost certainly a return to its control.
What this might look like is questionable. It could mean, as the Kurds have suggested, incorporating the SDF into the Syrian army; it could be limited autonomy for the Kurdish region, or it could be the complete disarmament of the region and replacing the border guards with Syrian regime soldiers.
The SDF, therefore, has almost no option that doesn't include some return to a relationship with the regime.
But doing that, the US has now signalled, would immediately end any America backing or assistance, giving the Kurds even less leverage in negotiations with the regime.
Kurdish leaders might have hoped that their efforts in fighting ISIS would broaden their support base and secure their future. The departure of US troops, however, brings an end to that aspiration.
Stripped back, the dilemma of the Kurdish-led SDF is choosing between Damascus and Ankara. And that, unfortunately, for the Kurds who hoped the war might grant them distance from Damascus, means returning to the fold in some form.
The Kurds have taken a long route over the past eight years of the conflict, seeking autonomy and deploying their fighters to help the Americans, only to find all paths are now shutting down and they have little choice but to head back to Damascus.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
RESULTS
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner AF Nashrah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner Mutaqadim, Riccardo Iacopini, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
6pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Hameem, Jose Santiago, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner AF Almomayaz, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Dalil Al Carrere, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash.
7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Jayide Al Boraq, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi.
Red Joan
Director: Trevor Nunn
Starring: Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson, Tereza Srbova
Rating: 3/5 stars
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Company%20profile%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EElggo%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20August%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Luma%20Makari%20and%20Mirna%20Mneimneh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Education%20technology%20%2F%20health%20technology%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESize%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Four%20employees%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
'Lost in Space'
Creators: Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless, Irwin Allen
Stars: Molly Parker, Toby Stephens, Maxwell Jenkins
Rating: 4/5
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Aahid Al Khalediah II, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Whistle, Harry Bentley, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup - Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Alsaied, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
6.30pm: Emirates Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Mumayaza, Antonio Fresu, Eric Lemartinel
7pm: Emirates Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Hameem, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7.30pm: President’s Cup – Group 1 (PA) Dh2,500,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle
8pm: President’s Cup – Listed (TB) Dh380,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Medahim, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
