Assad makes overture to Kurds after anti-government protests

State—run TV says that Mr. Assad issued a decree on Kurdish citizenship on Thursday.

Syrian President Bashar Assad waving to lawmakers at Parliament, in Damascus. File photo: AP.

Syria’s president has granted thousands of Kurds living in a north-eastern province Syrian citizenship in the latest overture by Bashar Assad to try and quell extraordinary anti—government protests.

State—run TV says that Mr. Assad issued a decree on Kurdish citizenship on Thursday.

It says he also sacked the governor of the central province of Homs that has witnessed clashes between anti—government protesters and security forces in the past three weeks.

Mr. Assad has struggled to subdue the protests that erupted in a southern city on March 18 and spread to other parts of the country.

Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Syria but many of them have long been denied citizenship. Mr. Assad’s move would fulfill their long-time demand.