The 12th article of the 14-point agreement, signed on 1 April, outlined a plan for the exchange of prisoners and detainees. However, the implementation scheduled for 28 May was suspended after the Damascus administration refused to release captured fighters from the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ).

Sources from the General Council in Sheikh Maqsoud (Şêxmeqsûd) and Ashrafieh (Eşrefiyê) reported that the exchange process resumed on Monday from where it left off. The resumption of the process was also discussed yesterday during a meeting held in Damascus between a delegation from North and East Syria and representatives of the Damascus government.

Officials emphasized during the talks that the file concerning the neighborhoods of Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud must be resolved “in a way that serves peace and stability.”

The exchange includes 290 individuals held by the General Council, consisting of both civilians and fighters, as well as 176 detainees requested by the Damascus government.

In the first prisoner and detainee exchange carried out on 3 April, 146 individuals, most of them civilians, were released, along with 97 people affiliated with Damascus, most of whom were Turkish-backed mercenaries.