SDF-held Raqqa city is tense, its nights under curfew punctuated by gunfire and arrests. Residents feel cut off from the rest of Syria, fearing the possibility of partition and a return of IS.
Countryside roads in SDF-controlled northeastern Syria are a hunting ground for armed robbers targeting civilians and humanitarian workers. Repeated security incidents limit residents’ freedom of movement and cut into organizations’ limited funding.
For journalists, northeastern Syria is a minefield of unspoken red lines. While the AANES says it is committed to freedom of the press, restrictions have proliferated in recent years.
Arbitrary arrests targeting journalists and opposition members are on the rise in territories controlled by the SDF, which faces mounting popular dissent and intra-Kurdish tensions.
The closure of the Kurdistan24 bureau in northeast Syria by local authorities reveals a restricted media space, against the backdrop of mounting Kurdish political tensions.
