What is unfolding in Syria is not merely the final act of a civil war; it is a tragic record of the Western world’s strategic blindness, short-term calculations, and evasion of historical responsibility.
The Trump administration’s policy toward the region is built upon a house of cards constructed from major delusions. And the collapse of this house threatens not only the Kurds, but the entire region and global security.
Washington’s treatment of its Kurdish allies in Syria is not a policy accident. This is the story of a systematic abandonment woven through conscious choices. The Kurds, who lost tens of thousands in the fight against ISIS and defended modern and secular values, are today being sacrificed on the altar of American interests. The root of the problem lies in Washington’s refusal from the outset to extend its relationship with the Kurds beyond military cooperation.
The “Arab-majority structure” imposed during the establishment of the Syrian Democratic Forces carried within it a time bomb. American intelligence reports clearly documented the past connections of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor tribes with ISIS.
Despite this, these elements were armed, authorized, and made part of the security architecture. While the Kurds acted on the belief in “brotherhood of peoples,” when pressure mounted, some Arab elements switched sides and stabbed the Kurds in the back. The political and moral responsibility for this outcome rests primarily with the United States. Washington knowingly took this risk and failed to take necessary precautions.
What has been decisive in the Trump administration’s approach is the economic promises of Gulf countries. Investment promises worth billions of dollars revolving around the reconstruction of Syria were sufficient to melt Washington’s sensitivity toward values and long-term strategic interests. The political future of the Kurds was crushed under these economic calculations.
The consequences of policy failures on the ground
The unconditional lifting of the Caesar Sanctions Act is the most concrete indicator of this choice. While lifting sanctions, Washington could have created binding mechanisms to secure the military and administrative status of the SDF. Instead, Damascus was given wide room to maneuver; the Kurds were presented with a fait accompli and pressured to surrender.
This ambiguity quickly turned into a military opportunity on the ground. The Damascus government, under Turkish state guidance, insidiously and in violation of agreements, attacked the Kurds. The United States refused to control the situation, allowing these attacks to continue. The attitude of Congress and the president, the concessions made at the expense of the Kurds, created this outcome. This will be recorded as one of the greatest betrayals in the history of American foreign policy.
The mask of Abu Mohammed al-Julani (Ahmed al-Sharaa), who has been placed at the head of Syria without democratic legitimacy, has long since fallen. His first action in attacks on northern and eastern Syria was to target the prisons holding ISIS members and release dangerous prisoners. This development poses a serious security threat not only to the region but to the entire world.
It has now become clear that Julani’s promises and agreements have had no substance or guarantee. The “New Syria administration,” which has been granted every kind of credit by the West, has emerged from the start as a major problem for the world. Today, all the jihadists of the world are gathering in Syria, and the consequences of this Western delusion will be very severe.
The Julani administration has practiced oppression, domination, and systematic violence in every region it controls. This is a reality openly rejected not only by Kurds but also by Druze, Alawites, and other minorities in Syria. The Turkish state is effectively behind this policy of pressure against all of Syria’s minorities.
There is a truth that history has taught us repeatedly: the integration of armed structures shaped by radical Islamist ideology with a secular and pluralistic order is not possible. The September 11 attacks, what happened on October 7, ISIS’s regional and global terror; these are different manifestations of the same ideological worldview. The SDF experience is the latest and most painful example of this delusion.
Julani’s acceptance by the Western world as a head of state or legitimate political actor is no longer possible. All his promises have proven empty, and in a short time, he has emerged as the political and military architect of massacres and crimes. This figure must be held accountable before the international community as responsible for the savage executions and crimes against humanity in Syria.
At this point, it is essential that America’s Jewish lobby and Congress step in. The Trump administration’s Middle East policy contains major delusions, and great effort must be made through Congress to correct these delusions.
The unlimited political credit that US President Donald Trump has extended to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Julani has brought the Middle East once again to the brink of a major conflagration. The fragile stability achieved through great sacrifices over the years is now at serious risk of collapse. The United States must apply the heaviest and most explicit sanctions ever seen against this new oppressive structure in Syria.
The failure to implement any of the ceasefires, agreements, and understandings made under American supervision clearly demonstrates the unreliability of this structure. A sustainable political solution is not possible with an actor that turns to massacre whenever it finds a power vacuum with an opportunistic mentality.
One of the areas Julani will target when he fully consolidates power and establishes control throughout the country will be the Golan. A potential major conflict in such a scenario will produce not regional but global consequences. A radical Islamist Syrian administration, despite short-term tactical accommodations, poses a serious existential threat to the region in the long term.
For this reason, it is no longer possible for the Western world to merely observe developments. The Kurds are a natural security barrier against radicalism in the region. Protecting and supporting the Kurds, who defend secular life, exercise women’s freedom, and pay the heaviest price against ISIS, is not only a moral imperative but also a strategic necessity.
America’s easy abandonment of an actor who actually defended its values on the ground will poison all future local partnerships. This message is being carefully noted by actors in other parts of the world who might consider partnering with Washington in the future.
A structure that establishes dominance in Syria through a security architecture intertwined with jihadist elements has left religious and ethnic minorities throughout the country unprotected. Such a Syria will be neither truly predictable nor safe for American interests in the region. While finding a complete solution in the short term may not be possible, it is essential that the current policy change immediately for rapid transformation.
The consequences of the Western world’s delusions will be very severe. Syria has become a global gathering point for radical jihadists, and the dimensions of this threat are growing with each passing day.
The issue is now not one of geopolitical bargaining but of conscience, security, and international responsibility. Savage executions and crimes against humanity against Kurds have occurred. The risk of greater conflicts and severe attacks on civilian settlements in the coming period is increasing.
Future generations will examine the decisions made during this period as an example of how short-term interest calculations led to long-term strategic disasters that undermined the foundations of American power.
This bitter lesson of history can still be prevented today. But for this to happen, Congress, American public opinion, and the entire Western world must act immediately.
Time is rapidly running out to stop this jihadist paradise created in Syria.
The writer is a Kurdish exiled journalist, political analyst, and Middle East observer focusing on Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Kurdish affairs. a.mardin@icloud.com