Levant Front and People's Protection Units Agreement (Unnamed)

  • Country/entity
    Syria
  • Region
    Middle East and North Africa
  • Agreement name
    Levant Front and People's Protection Units Agreement (Unnamed)
  • Date
    5 Feb 2015
  • Agreement status
    Multiparty signed/agreed
  • Interim arrangement
    Yes
  • Agreement/conflict level
    Intrastate/local conflict ( Syrian Conflicts (1948 - ) (1976 - 2005) (2011 - ) )
  • Stage
    Pre-negotiation/process
  • Conflict nature
    Inter-group
  • Peace process
    Syrian Local Agreements
  • Parties
    Levant Front;
    People's Protection Units (YPG)
  • Third parties
    -
  • Description
    Short agreement between Levant Front and People's Protection Units on joint Shariah Courts, offices for proselytization, the situation of mosques and to jointly target the Islamic State and the regime of Bashar al-Asad.

Local agreement properties

  • Process type
    Informal but persistent process
  • Rationale
    -> Local issues only; no external support mechanism; culture of signing No formally-established mechanism supported the negotiation between the two parties. Moreover, this agreement cannot be linked to the national peace process. Indeed, both groups have a Salafist ideology; they oppose the rule of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and reject the idea of a national negotiation to solve the conflict. Yet, it seems that both signing parties (especially the YPG) choose to resort to agreements to solve daily pragmatic issues related to their armed struggle. Although one cannot speak of a “culture” of singing peace agreements, the parties are involved (in a non-proactive and non-conscious way) in a persistent practice of signing local agreements.
  • Is there a documented link to a national peace process?
    No
  • Link to national process: articulated rationale
    No link to the national peace process in Syria is mentioned in the agreement, neither it can be inferred from further research. First, the agreement does not involve local governance actors; and the signing parties themselves are not official state representative. Second, all parties to the agreement reject the national peace process, as it would maintain Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian government in power. The agreement refers to the Syrian regime as "corrupter[s]"
  • Name of Locale
    Aleppo, Afrin (including countryside)
  • Nature Of Locale
    Region
  • GPS Lat/Long (DD)
    36.510028, 36.868782
  • Participant type
    Local armed group
  • Mediator, facilitator or similar
    No mention of mediator or similar

Local issues

  • Ritual/prayer and process (including use of scripture)
    Page 1, Unify the executive authorities of both parties, including all courts and rule according to the Shariah of Allah.
  • Grievance List
    Although the agreement does not refer to specific causes of the conflict, it lists three provisions to address local grievances.

    Page 1,
    1. Unify the executive authorities of both parties, including all courts and rule according to the Shariah of Allah.
    2. Both parties [will] open an office for the purposes of Dawa [proselytizing] and Shariah and follow up on the issues of mosques, including that of Friday prayer in Aleppo, Arfin and its surrounding villages.
    3. Pursue the corrupters (Dawlah [ISIS] & the Regime) wherever they are and make them stand trial in order to return rights to their people and ensure that there is safety and security in the liberated areas, where the signatories of this agreement are based.
  • Cattle rustling/banditry

    No specific mention.

  • Social cover
    Page 1, Pursue the corrupters (Dawlah [ISIS] & the Regime) wherever they are and make them stand trial

In this agreement, the Levant Front and the People’s Protecton Units (YPG) agree to:

1. Unify the executive authorities of both parties, including all courts and rule according to the Shariah of Allah.

2. Both parties [will] open an office for the purposes of Dawa [proselytizing] and Shariah and follow up on the issues of mosques, including that of Friday prayer in Aleppo, Arfin and its surrounding villages.

3. Pursue the corrupters (Dawlah [ISIS] & the Regime) wherever they are and make them stand trial in order to return rights to their people and ensure that there is safety and security in the liberated areas, where the signatories of this agreement are based.

Levant Front [Signed]

People’s Defence Units (YPG) [Signed]

[5 February 2015]