ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Fighting has resumed between Kurdish security forces and armed factions aligned with Damascus in and around the predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyah in Syria's northern city of Aleppo, despite regional and international efforts to end the five-day-long conflict.
The Syrian Arab Army claimed it had fully taken control of Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsood neighborhood in a statement released on Saturday.
The Kurdish administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) immediately dismissed these claims, stating that clashes were still ongoing.
Well-placed sources on the ground confirmed to Rudaw that Damascus-affiliated forces have entered Khaled Fajar Hospital in the Sheikh Maqsood neighborhood.
International response
France condemned the renewed violence on Saturday.
“France deplores the resumption of fighting in Aleppo, particularly in the Sheikh Maqsood district,” the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It called on “all parties to immediately return to the ceasefire, facilitate access for humanitarian aid, and protect the civilian population.”
The ministry added, “France supports proposals aimed at ensuring the protection of all civilians in Aleppo, as the Syrian government has pledged, and at enabling a dignified withdrawal of combatants.”
France reaffirmed its cooperation with international partners, “primarily the United States, to restore security and stability to Aleppo within the framework of a united, sovereign, and pluralistic Syria.”
Offer to end ongoing violence
Rojava authorities announced early Saturday that they welcomed an international proposal to transfer Kurdish fighters from the Kurdish-majority quarters in Aleppo to Rojava, provided that the Kurdish population in the area is protected.
Elham Ahmad, co-chair of Rojava’s foreign affairs, released a statement on behalf of the Kurdish administration, saying they “welcome the proposal of the international mediating forces to reposition the forces present in Sheikh Maqsood to the east of the Euphrates in a safe manner, provided that local Kurdish protection and a local council for the residents of the two neighborhoods are ensured, in accordance with the April 1 agreement.”
The statement refers to an agreement between Kurdish authorities and Damascus.
On the ground
The renewed clashes follow days of confrontations between the Asayish (Kurdish security forces) and the Syrian Arab Army. While Ashrafiyah has partially fallen under army control, Sheikh Maqsood remains under Asayish control.
A brief ceasefire brokered by the United States and France collapsed on Friday.
The escalation comes despite a landmark agreement reached in March between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which established a nationwide ceasefire. Talks between the two sides are ongoing, but the latest round, held on Sunday, failed to produce tangible results, according to Syrian state media.