Syria’s interim government says it has reached a landmark agreement with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces to integrate the group into state institutions.

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 on Monday to join Syria's new state institutions,

The agreement marked a major victory for Damascus in its quest to unify the country, as violent unrest continues to grip Syria’s coastal region.