The Syrian army launched new strikes in parts of Aleppo on Thursday after ordering residents to evacuate, accusing the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces of using Kurdish-majority neighborhoods to launch attacks, as clashes entered a third day.
The army released more than seven maps identifying areas it said would be targeted, urging residents to leave immediately for their safety. Its operations command announced a curfew in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods starting at 3 p.m.
Clashes in Aleppo
The fighting, which erupted Tuesday, has forced thousands of civilians from their homes and killed and wounded several people.
“Today, up to this moment, almost 13,500 people have left,” said Faisal Ali, head of operations for the Syrian civil defense forces in Aleppo. “Most were women, children and people with special needs. Some patients were evacuated to hospitals and others received medical care in ambulances.”
The SDF said its fighters were engaged in intense clashes with Damascus-aligned factions and auxiliaries near Aleppo’s Syriac neighborhood, adding that they inflicted what they described as heavy losses.
The violence and competing claims over responsibility underscore a deepening and increasingly deadly standoff between Damascus and Kurdish authorities, who have resisted integration into the central government.
Accusations of ethnic cleansing
Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said he was deeply concerned by attacks on Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo, warning that targeting civilians and attempts to alter the area’s demographic makeup amounted to ethnic cleansing.
Barzani called on all sides to exercise restraint, protect civilians and pursue dialogue.
The SDF accused Damascus-aligned factions of threatening unlawful attacks on civilian areas, saying public warnings of shelling could amount to forced displacement and war crimes under international humanitarian law.
Residents continued to flee Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh through designated safe corridors.
The SDF is a U.S.-backed alliance that controls much of northeastern Syria and has been Washington’s main local partner in the fight against Islamic State.
Kurdish-led authorities established a semi-autonomous administration in those areas and parts of Aleppo during Syria’s 14-year civil war and have resisted fully integrating into the Islamist-led government that took power after former President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in late 2024.
Damascus reached an agreement with the SDF last year calling for full integration by the end of 2025, but progress has been limited, with both sides accusing the other of stalling.
The United States has sought to mediate, holding meetings as recently as Sunday, though the talks ended without tangible results.
Diplomats warn that failure to integrate the SDF into Syria’s army risks further violence and could draw in Turkey, which has threatened military action against Kurdish fighters it considers terrorists.
Turkey said Thursday it is ready to help Syria if asked, after the Syrian army independently launched what it described as a “counterterrorism” operation in Aleppo.