Journalists press Syrian envoy on ISIS detainees, alleged abuses and utilities in Kobani

After announcing the understanding on Hasakah, the Syrian government representative took questions from journalists on security and humanitarian concerns.

Journalists asked about reports that ISIS members had reportedly escaped from detention following SDF movements. The representative said: "That question should be put to the SDF, why they abandoned their positions, open the gates and ensure that ISIS members were let go." He added the government was "working with our allies to regain control of what has happened" and that Syria, as a member of the international coalition against ISIS, had experience in targeting leadership, arrests and intelligence sharing.

Reporters also raised claims that residents in Kobani reported more than a week without water and electricity and accused the government of being behind the outages. The representative said the government had not cut utilities and that it would look into the situation to ensure the city had electricity now that the governor is present.

When asked about a human rights organization’s claim that verified video footage showed uniformed Syrian army members abusing and desecrating the bodies of female fighters, the representative cautioned about disinformation and said: "In cases where certain things went wrong and other in the past, we have let the UN in. We've investigated. We've held trials. If anything to that effect happens again, we have shown that we will take responsibility for those actions." He acknowledged the complexity of operations in populated areas and said investigations would proceed where warranted.

A reporter also asked about regional actors and Israel’s role; the representative cited the 1974 agreement and accused Israel of repeated breaches of that line, saying Syria had engaged constructively and would continue to work with the United States and partners on those issues.

The representative blamed the SDF for using security concerns as leverage during prior negotiations and described some SDF actions as contributing to operational complications, but he did not provide independent confirmation of the escape figures cited by journalists.

The briefing produced several pledges by the representative to investigate allegations, to work with international partners on security, and to monitor utilities and local conditions; no independent verification of the detainee escape claims or the human-rights footage was presented during the session.