Will the Syrian army end up controlling Kurdish-held areas?

Inside StoryThe army has made significant territorial gains after intense battles with the SDF.It all started in Aleppo, and now the fighting has expanded to the northeastern parts of Syria.The army says it has made major advances there, seizing areas previously under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Syrian government, Kurdish-led SDF agree on ceasefire: What to knowlist 2 of 3Recent fighting in Syria is “a nightmare scenario for the US”list 3 of 3Syria announces ceasefire agreement with Kurd-led SDF after heavy fightingend of listThis rapid sequence of events paves the way for the government to tighten its grip on this strategic and oil-rich region.Many rounds of talks and agreements between Damascus and the SDF leadership over the last year have yielded no results.That is despite involvement from the US in efforts to bring the two sides to common ground.How will this play out within Syria and the wider region?Presenter: James BaysGuests:Omar Abu Layla – Syrian Affairs analystScott Lucas – Professor of US and international politics at University College DublinKamaran Palani – Kurdish principal investigator for the PeaceRep Iraq programme at the London School of Economics and Political SciencePublished On 18 Jan 2026