Ahmed al-Khabil, aka Rashid Abu Khawla.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has acknowledged that the former leader of its largest Arab faction, the Deir Ezzor Military Council (DMC), was involved in criminal activities, including drug trafficking.
The leader, Rashid Abu Khawla, was arrested by the SDF along with several other senior commanders of the DMC after being invited to a meeting at a base in the governorate of al-Hasakah late on August 27.
Around the same time as the arrest, the group announced that it had launched a large-scale security operation in its areas in Deir Ezzor in cooperation with its main backer, the United States-led coalition. The move was met with an armed uprising by DMC fighters and local Arab tribesmen.
In a statement released on August 31, the SDF alleged that the decision to remove and arrest Abu Khawla was taken by the DMC.
The statement accuses the Arab leader of committing several serious crimes and violations, including communicating with an “anti-revolution” foreign power, drug trafficking, abuse of power and facilitating ISIS operations in Deir Ezzor.
“The DMC, with the approval of the Military Council of the SDF, has decided to remove Ahmed al-Khabil [the real name of Abu Khawala] from his duties in leading the DMC, and to terminate the duties of four other people within the council who were directly related to these crimes and violations,” the statement reads.
Abu Khawla’s criminal activities and his strong ties to ISIS were well known not only for the SDF, but also for the U.S.-led coalition. Still, the leader maintained his position for more than seven years.
The SDF’s statement failed to stop the armed uprising in Deir Ezzor. On August 31, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported clashes between the towns of al-Tayana and Dhiban in the southeastern Deir Ezzor countryside as well as inside the towns of Jadeed Ekedat and al-Rubaida in the eastern countryside of the governorate.
According to the London-based monitoring group, the clashes have so far claimed the lives of 20 tribesmen, 11 personnel of the SDF, four suspected gunmen and five civilians, including two children and a woman.
The U.S.-led coalition, which maintains two bases at the Conoco gas plant and al-Omar oil fields in the eastern and southern Deir Ezzor countryside, has not yet commented on the arrest of Abu Khwala or intervened to stop the clashes.
The ongoing clashes in Deir Ezzor could spark a dangerous ethnic conflict in northern and eastern Syria. The SDF will not likely survive such a conflict without direct support from the U.S.-led coalition.
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why is the presence of us military anywhere in the world always accompanied with drug trafficking, since 1960’s? don’t they know that there are other ways to earn money? oh, they don’t…they are anglos.
criminal kurds and criminal arabs, both supported by the usa, are now going at each other! why does the us lose control over its puppets anytime and anywhere in the world at some point?