At least seven killed in fire at prison in northern Syria

Inmates rioted following protests in the city of Kobane over the killing of a former Kurdish fighter, state media reports.

Syrian government forces and the country's Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reached an integration agreement this year [File: Abdulmonam Eassa/Getty Images]

At least seven inmates have been killed and others injured after a fire broke out at a prison in a predominantly Kurdish town in northern Syria.

The fire started when inmates at a jail in Kobane rioted over tensions that had erupted in the town on Friday, Syrian state-run news agency SANA reported on Saturday. However, the cause of the blaze is yet to be officially confirmed.

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“Dozens were injured, burned or suffocated following a riot,” state TV reported.

According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the riot began overnight after authorities decided to transfer some inmates to another facility in Aleppo.

On Friday, protests broke out in Kobane over the killing of a former Kurdish fighter, Sami Sheikhmous Hiso.

Hiso’s body was returned to Kobane on Thursday after he was kidnapped, according to the AFP news agency. AFP reported that his body showed wounds caused by gunfire.

The protests and prison riot highlight the divisions still present in Syria following the ousting of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.

Syria’s new head of state, President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has pledged to oversee an inclusive administration and govern for all. However, his pledge has been set back by bouts of sectarian violence involving government forces.

In January, Damascus and Syria’s Kurdish community reached an integration agreement, which has since seen Kurdish civilian and military institutions become part of the Syrian state . The prison in Kobane is still administered by Kurdish authorities and is yet to be handed over to the central government.

Demonstrations against Hiso’s death turned violent on Friday, leading to arrests, according to Kurdish news outlet Rudaw. Rudaw reported that some of the protesters attacked security forces and were being held in the prison at the time of the riot and fire.

Syrian presidential adviser Mazloum Abdi (also known as Mazloum Kobani) arrived in Kobane on Saturday and has been meeting with senior officials there, according to media reports.

Abdi was appointed presidential adviser last month, days after announcing the dissolution of the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish coalition of armed groups that he led.

据官方媒体报道，科巴尼市发生抗议活动，起因是一名前库尔德战士被杀，随后监狱内发生骚乱。

叙利亚政府军和该国库尔德人领导的叙利亚民主力量（SDF）今年达成了一项一体化协议。[图片：Abdulmonam Eassa/Getty Images]

叙利亚北部一个以库尔德人为主的城镇的监狱发生火灾，造成至少7名囚犯死亡，另有多人受伤。

据叙利亚国家通讯社SANA周六报道，科巴尼一所监狱的囚犯因不满周五该镇爆发的紧张局势而发生暴动，引发火灾。然而，火灾原因尚未得到官方证实。

叙利亚拘留了一名阿萨德时代的将军，他被指控血腥镇压抗议活动（共3条，第1条）。

列表 2/3：随着叙利亚民主力量解散，库尔德人思考如何保障自身权利

名单中的第三名：库尔德YPJ女战士面临被排除在叙利亚新军队之外

据国家电视台报道，“骚乱导致数十人受伤、烧伤或窒息”。

据总部位于英国的叙利亚人权观察组织称，骚乱始于夜间，起因是当局决定将一些囚犯转移到阿勒颇的另一处设施。

周五，科巴尼爆发抗议活动，起因是前库尔德战士萨米·谢赫穆斯·希索被杀害。

据法新社报道，希索的遗体在被绑架后于周四被送回小巴尼。法新社报道称，他的遗体上有枪伤痕迹。

抗议活动和监狱暴动凸显了叙利亚在长期领导人巴沙尔·阿萨德于 2024 年 12 月被推翻后仍然存在的分裂。

叙利亚新任国家元首艾哈迈德·沙拉总统承诺将建立一个包容各方的政府，为所有人服务。然而，政府军参与的教派冲突使他的承诺受挫。

今年1月，大马士革与叙利亚库尔德社群达成融合协议，此后库尔德的民事和军事机构并入叙利亚国家体制。科巴尼监狱目前仍由库尔德当局管理，尚未移交给中央政府。

据库尔德新闻媒体鲁达夫报道，周五，针对希索之死的抗议活动演变为暴力事件，导致多人被捕。鲁达夫报道称，部分抗议者袭击了安全部队，并在骚乱和纵火发生时被关押在监狱中。

据媒体报道，叙利亚总统顾问马兹卢姆·阿卜迪（又名马兹卢姆·科巴尼）于周六抵达科巴尼，并一直在与当地高级官员会面。

阿卜迪上个月被任命为总统顾问，几天前他宣布解散了叙利亚民主力量，这是一个由他领导的库尔德武装团体组成的联盟。