During the reference period, the main security development in Raqqa governorate was the SDF’s loss of territorial control and the takeover of the governorate by the transitional government authority.888 This shift in control was accompanied by clashes, especially in the areas of Tabqa889 and Raqqa city.890 During the fighting in January 2026, allegations of abuses committed by both parties emerged in north-eastern Syria.891 Civilians were reportedly killed while fleeing on the road between Raqqa and Hasaka.892
Following the takeover by the transitional government authorities, ISIL attacks targeting security forces in the governorate were recorded.893
From March 2026 onwards, SOHR and local sources documented mistreatment of Kurdish residents of Raqqa governorate, including threatening and intimidating behaviour,894 obstruction of Kurdish students’ continued education,895 property confiscation,896 torture in detention,897 arbitrary arrests898 and a series of arrests of persons accused of affiliation with the SDF.899 No wider reporting of the described incidents could be found as part of the research.
Compared with the preceding reporting period, the configuration of actors involved in hostilities in the governorate changed. While late 2024 and early 2025 were marked by attacks of Türkiye/SNA against the SDF,900 the reference period was characterised by confrontations involving government forces and the SDF.901 Incidents affecting civilians that were attributed mainly to the SDF were recorded from December 2024 until mid-January 2026. From mid-January 2026 onwards, attacks against civilians mainly involved the security forces of the transitional government or unidentified armed groups.902
- 888
ISW and CTP, Assessed Control of Terrain in Syria November 10, 2025 at 2:00 PM ET [Map], 10 November 2025, url; ISW and CTP, Assessed Control of Terrain in Syria, February 16, 2026 at 2:00 PM ET [Map], 16 February 2026, url; Aftandilian, G., The Shrinking Space for Kurdish Autonomy in Syria, Arab Center Washington DC, 26 February 2026, url
- 889
MEE, SDF reports 'intense clashes' as Syrian army advances in Aleppo and Raqqa, 17 January 2026, url; UN News, Prison breaks and renewed clashes raise alarm in northeast Syria, 20 January 2026, url
- 890
BBC, Clashes reported after Syria and Kurdish-led forces agree ceasefire, 18 January 2026, url; SOHR, 12 killed and injured | Civilians fleeing from Al-Raqqa towards Al-Hasakah targeted by gunshots, 18 January 2026, url; UN News, Prison breaks and renewed clashes raise alarm in northeast Syria, 20 January 2026, url
- 891
MEI, Integration or conflict in northeastern Syria? Ten key points to consider, 29 January 2026, url; Synergy Hevdesti, From Aleppo to Al-Hasakah: Civilians Caught Between Bombardment, Disappearances, and Attacks on Dignity and Identity, 24 February 2026, url, p. 11; Lister, C., Syria Weekly: January 20-27, 2026, Syria Weekly, 27 January 2026, url
- 892
SOHR, 12 killed and injured | Civilians fleeing from Al-Raqqa towards Al-Hasakah targeted by gunshots, 18 January 2026, url; SNHR, Documentation of the Killing of At Least 22 Civilians, Mostly by Snipers, at the Hands of the SDF in Raqqa Governorate on January 18, 23 January 2026, url; Synergy Hevdesti, From Aleppo to Al-Hasakah: Civilians Caught Between Bombardment, Disappearances, and Attacks on Dignity and Identity, 24 February 2026, url, p. 7
- 893
Shafaq News, ISIS claims attacks in Syria’s Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, 18 April 2026, url; Asharq Al-Awsat, ISIS Intensifies Lone Wolf Attacks in Syria, 27 February 2026, url; Rudaw, Suspected ISIS attack kills four members of security forces in Syria’s Raqqa, 23 February 2026, url; SOHR, ISIS resurgence |ISIS claims responsibility for two attacks in Al-Raqqa, 21 February 2026, url
- 894
SOHR, Al-Raqqah | Tension grows in Ain Issa countryside and clashes and threats target Kurdish residents, 25 March 2026, url; SOHR, Systematic threats and escalation in Al-Raqqah spur Kurdish families to flee, 26 March 2026, url
- 895
SOHR, Amid insults and restrictions | Kurdish students deprived of their academic files in Al-Raqqah, 23 April 2026, url
- 896
SOHR, Escalating violations in Al-Raqqah | Confiscation of Kurdish residents’ property and theft of their vehicles forces renewed displacement, 23 April 2026, url; Kurd Online, تعليمات بإخلاء وهدم منازل تعود لعائلات كردية في الرقة تثير مخاوف من تغييرات ديموغرافية وانتهاكات لحقوق الملكية [Instructions to evacuate and demolish homes belonging to Kurdish families in Raqqa raise concerns about demographic changes and property rights violations.], 18 April 2026, url
- 897
SOHR, 48 hours after being arrested | Kurdish civilian killed under brutal torturing in prisons of Syrian Interim Government in Al-Raqqa, 1 May 2026, url; Kurd Online, مقتل إسماعيل الكردي تحت التعذيب في الرقة بعد يوم من اعتقاله يسلّط الضوء على تصاعد الانتهاكات بحق الأكراد [The killing of Ismail al-Kurdi under torture in Raqqa, a day after his arrest, highlights the escalating violations against Kurds], 1 May 2026, url; ANHA, Kurdish citizen killed under torture in Raqqa, 2 May 2026, url
- 898
SOHR, Arbitrary arrest of two Kurdish young men in Al-Raqqah raises concerns of escalating abuses, 17 April 2026, url; Kurd Online, رايتس مونيتور: اعتقال مواطنين كرديين في الرقة وسط غموض حول مصيرهما وتصاعد المخاوف من انتهاكات بحق السكان الكرد [Rights Monitor: Two Kurdish citizens arrested in Raqqa amid uncertainty about their fate and escalating fears of abuses against the Kurdish population], 20 April 2026, url
- 899
SOHR, For “belonging to SDF” | Two Kurdish young men arrested in Al-Raqqa, 1 April 2026, url; SOHR, Accused of “dealing with SDF” | Six Kurdish young men arrested in Al-Raqqah, 16 April 2026, url; SOHR, For “dealing with SDF” | Two Kurdish people including a lawyer arrested in Al-Raqqa City, 3 May 2026, url; SOHR, Accused of “pledging allegiance to SDF” | Three Kurdish civilians arrested in Al-Raqqah, 4 May 2026, url; SOHR, Blatant violations | Turkish-backed groups arrest ten civilians and seize farmlands in predominantly-Kurdish village in Al-Raqqah, 7 May 2026, url; Kurd Online, اعتقال فريد كردو في الرقة ضمن حملة متصاعدة تستهدف المدنيين الكرد وسط مخاوف من انتهاكات ممنهجة [Farid Kurdo was arrested in Raqqa as part of an escalating campaign targeting Kurdish civilians, amid fears of systematic abuses.], 6 May 2026, url; ANHA, Ten civilians from Sheikhan tribe kidnapped in Raqqa countryside, 7 May 2026, url
- 900
ISW and CTP, Iran Update, March 21, 2025, 21 March 2025, url, p. 8
- 901
EUAA analysis based on ACLED data. ACLED, Data Export Tool, Syria, data covering 9 December 2024 to 31 May 2026, as of 9 June 2026, url
- 902
EUAA analysis based on ACLED data. ACLED, Data Export Tool, Syria, data covering 9 December 2024 to 31 May 2026, as of 9 June 2026, url