General Mazloum Abdi, head of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), was flown to Damascus for Monday's signing with interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa aboard a U.S. military aircraft, three sources said.

The image of the two men meeting, having discarded their military uniforms and put on suits, illustrates how leaders can seize the moment and opt for peace over war.

The Kurdish-led and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls much of Syria's oil-rich northeast, signed a deal with the Damascus government to join Syria's new state institutions.