ByGOLDIE KATZ

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree granting Kurdish Syrians full Syrian citizenship and criminalizing discrimination against Kurds on Friday, according to the Syrian state-owned news outlet SANA.

The announcement of the decree comes as al-Sharaa's government faces heavy criticism for its treatment of ethnic minorities in Syria, including the Kurds.

The decree, which includes eight articles, established that “Syrian Kurdish citizens are an essential and integral part of the Syrian people,” declaring that Kurdish “cultural and linguistic identity is an inseparable part of the diverse and unified Syrian national identity.”

The fourth article of the decree announced the nullification of “laws and measures resulting from the 1962 census in Al-Hasakah Governorate” and the granting of Syrian nationality to “all citizens of Kurdish origin residing on Syrian territory… with their full equality in rights and duties.”

“Any discrimination or exclusion based on ethnicity or language is legally prohibited,” the decree outlined, adding that “anyone who incites national strife shall be punished in accordance with applicable laws.”

Additionally, the decree includes a commitment to “protecting cultural and linguistic diversity, and guarantees the right of Kurdish citizens to revive their heritage and arts and develop their mother tongue.”

A Kurdish internal security forces member stands guard with a weapon as Syrian Kurds attend a protest in solidarity with the people in the neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh in Aleppo, in Hasakah, Syria January 7, 2026.
A Kurdish internal security forces member stands guard with a weapon as Syrian Kurds attend a protest in solidarity with the people in the neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh in Aleppo, in Hasakah, Syria January 7, 2026. (credit: REUTERS/Orhan Qereman)

'No superiority for an Arab, a Kurd, a Turk'

In a pre-recorded speech also released on Friday, al-Sharaa stated that it was an honor to issue the decree, adding “there is no superiority for an Arab, a Kurd, a Turk… regardless of their ethnicity.”

Al-Sharaa discouraged Kurdish Syrians from “believing the narrative that we want evil for our Kurdish people,” stating that he wants “nothing but the well-being of the country and its people, development, reconstruction, and the unity of the country.”

Kushish-Syrian clashes in Aleppo

Al-Sharaa's decree came as tensions between his administration and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Force (SDF) reached an all-time high, with heavy clashes in the city of Aleppo resulting in Syrian forces ejecting SDF troops from Kurdish-controlled neighborhoods.

Over 150,000 Kurdish Syrians had fled the area, Reuters reported on Wednesday, after fighting killed more than 20 people.

Seth J. Frantzman and Reuters contributed to this report.