Syrian Kurdish forces reached an agreement with the Syrian government to integrate with the Syrian army following recent clashes, according to Al Jazeera on Friday, January 30, 2026. The agreement comes as Kurdish-led forces are being pushed back in northeast Syria, a region they governed with a high degree of autonomy for over a decade, Sky News reported.
The Kurds' semi-autonomous region is rapidly shrinking, but Kurdish fighters remain a sizeable military force, according to Sky News. Damascus is demanding that they disarm and integrate into the national army. Kurdish leaders warn that their way of life and their political future are at stake. Alex Rossi, international correspondent for Sky News, reported from Hasakah, Syria, that the Kurds have vowed to "fight until the end."
In other news, the United Nations and the organizers of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics called for a seven-week pause in all global conflicts, Euronews reported. The proposed timeout, backed by a UN General Assembly resolution, covers the period from February 6-22 for the Winter Games and the 6-15 March for the Paralympics. Supporters of the initiative say it sets a moral baseline at a time when armed conflicts are on the rise. UN truce resolutions typically pass with broad majorities.
Meanwhile, in the United States, President Donald Trump endorsed a spending deal negotiated by US Senate Republicans and Democrats to avert a government shutdown, Sky News reported. The deal would fund the vast majority of the government until September and extend current funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Trump said that "Republicans and Democrats have come together to get the vast majority of the government funded until September." The move comes as the US reels from the deaths of two protesters at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis.
In Serbia, police seized nearly five tonnes of marijuana in a raid near Kruševac, Euronews reported. Two people were arrested in the operation, which also uncovered weapons, suggesting a large criminal network. The drugs were stored in bulk and prepared for distribution in the village of Konjuh, according to the interior ministry. Police also found four automatic rifles and a handheld grenade launcher, suggesting the site was protected and part of a wider criminal network.
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