Aleppo Strikes Renewed by Syrian Army Amid Stalemate with Kurdish Forces

Syrian Army Launches Military Operation in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud Neighborhood

The Syrian Arab Army has announced the start of a military operation in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of Aleppo. The operation began after a deadline for Kurdish fighters to evacuate the area expired, as part of a temporary ceasefire.

A six-hour window was given to Kurdish fighters to withdraw from the area, but they rejected the offer and pledged to defend their control over parts of the city. The Syrian army then warned it would renew strikes on Sheikh Maqsoud and urged residents to evacuate through a humanitarian corridor.

The Syrian Ministry of Defence had declared the ceasefire earlier in the day, following three days of clashes between the central government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF had refused to withdraw from the area, citing their control over the city’s Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh districts since the early days of the Syria war.

The Syrian army claimed that Kurdish fighters in the neighborhood had killed more than 10 Kurdish youths who refused to take up arms with them, then burned their bodies. The SDF denied these claims, stating they were part of the Syrian government’s “policy of lies and disinformation”.

At least 22 people have been killed and 173 others wounded in Aleppo since the fighting broke out on Tuesday. The violence has displaced at least 159,000 people, according to the director of Syria’s civil defence.

The SDF had agreed to integrate with the Syrian Defence Ministry by the end of 2025, but progress has been slow. The Syrian government has maintained control over parts of Aleppo, despite the group’s assertion that it withdrew its fighters from the city last year.

The conflict in Aleppo highlights one of the main faultlines in Syria, with powerful Kurdish forces resisting integration efforts by the government.

Source: Al Jazeera