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The Syrian Army announced Friday it has begun a military operation against SDF terrorists in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after the expiration of withdrawal deadlines, according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency.
The army's Operations Authority said the offensive followed the collapse of negotiations with the SDF, which holds territories in northeastern Syria. Syrian military officials accused the group of attacking evacuation buses and shelling army positions, resulting in the deaths of three soldiers and injuries to more than twelve others.
"The policy of procrastination adopted by the QSD organization, which is accompanied by systematic shelling and targeting of civilian sites before military ones in the city of Aleppo, reduces the chances of continuing any new agreement with this organization," the Operations Authority stated.
The Syrian Arab Army Operations Authority claimed it discovered elements from the PKK, which is designated as a terrorist group by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union, operating within Sheikh Maqsoud. The statement accused these fighters of participating with the SDF terrorists in killing more than ten young Kurdish men who refused to join their ranks.
"These criminals participated with the QSD organization in killing more than ten young Kurdish men who refused to fight alongside them, and afterward, they coldly burned their bodies to intimidate our people inside the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood," according to the military statement.
Syrian army officials said they had attempted to reach a settlement that would allow SDF to withdraw from the neighborhood with their weapons. However, the military claimed the group targeted evacuation buses on three separate occasions while continuing to shell military positions.
The breakdown in negotiations prompted the military operation, according to the statement. The Syrian Arab Army did not provide details on the scope or objectives of the offensive.
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