Syria
The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES) logo. Graphic: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdish-led administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Tuesday condemned the deadly attacks on Kurdish-majority neighborhoods in northern Aleppo, calling them a “blatant violation” of humanitarian law and saying they reflect the interim Syrian authorities’ “lack of seriousness” in uniting the Syrian people.
In a statement, the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES) expressed “deep concern and strong condemnation” over the attacks, which it said killed and injured civilians in the two neighborhoods, as well as what it described as a “siege imposed on the [predominantly Kurdish] Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods” in Aleppo.
“This constitutes a blatant violation of all humanitarian laws and norms,” the DAANES said, adding that such practices “reveal the lack of seriousness” on the part of the Syrian interim government in “uniting the Syrian people and building a democratic state.”
The Rojava administration warned that the continuation of the violations along with “the unjustified and unlawful escalation and violence, obstructs any genuine efforts” to “achieve comprehensive and sustainable political solutions to the Syrian crisis and fuel instability and division.”
Earlier in the day, the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that “one member of the Syrian Arab Army was killed and others were wounded,” and that “three civilians - including two women - were killed and around 15 others were injured to varying degrees, including two children,” in what it said were “drone attacks” and “shelling” carried out by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) “against residential neighborhoods near Ashrafiyeh and Sheikh Maqsood” in Aleppo.
For their part, the SDF accused Damascus-affiliated factions of carrying out “indiscriminate artillery and missile shelling” targeting Kurdish-majority neighborhoods in northern Aleppo, resulting in the killing of “three martyrs - including two women - and 11 wounded, according to a preliminary count.”
Of note, the SDF is the de facto military force in Rojava and a key ally of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria.
SDF commander Mazloum Abdi and Syrian interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a landmark agreement outlining the integration of “all civil and military institutions” in Rojava into the Syrian state administration and establishing a nationwide ceasefire.
A follow-up agreement signed in early April, in the presence of American representatives, established a joint security framework for the Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods. Under the agreement, SDF fighters withdrew from both areas, while local security forces - namely the Kurdish Internal Security Forces (Asayish) - remained deployed.
Despite repeatedly denying involvement in the intermittent clashes that erupted in Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh last year, Syrian state media have consistently accused the SDF of involvement.
For its part, the Rojava administration warned that “the continuation of this escalatory approach” by the interim leadership in Damascus “will have grave consequences affecting all of Syria,” adding that “such policies and practices serve only projects of division, which we categorically reject and consider a threat to Syria’s unity, territory, and people.”
The DAANES urged “an immediate end to the siege, attacks, and violations” in northern Aleppo, called for those responsible to be held accountable, and called for “the adoption of democratic political solutions that guarantee the rights of all Syrians and pave the way toward building a democratic, decentralized Syria.”
In a similar vein, Fawza Youssef, a senior member of Rojava’s ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD), slammed in a statement on X the “attacks” on Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods “with heavy weapons by factions affiliated with the interim government in Damascus” as a violation of the April agreement between Damascus and the Kurdish forces, that “serves only agendas that seek to ignite an internal war in Syria.”
“Avoiding such practices is a national responsibility,” Youssef emphasized.
Hevin Sulaiman, co-chair of the Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods’ council, told Rudaw on Tuesday that Damascus-affiliated factions “are pursuing a policy of depopulating these neighborhoods.”
She noted, “We do not want the conflict to escalate; we want these attacks to stop through negotiations,” adding that “this escalation serves no Syrian party. Instead, it benefits the enemies of the democratic nation project and undermines progress in the March 10 agreement talks, which have advanced in recent days.”
The renewed clashes come days after SDF Chief, Abdi, led a delegation to Damascus on Sunday to discuss the implementation of the March 10 agreement with Syrian leadership representatives. Despite remarks hinting at “good news,” neither side reported any concrete progress.
In a statement, the SDF said it and the transitional government had agreed to hold further talks on military integration, while state media reported that the discussions had failed to produce tangible results.
Key disagreements persist over the form of integration, with Damascus advocating for the individual absorption of SDF fighters into the army, while the SDF insists on maintaining its forces as a unified entity in their current areas.
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