ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack on Saturday met with the Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, discussing the ongoing clashes between the Kurdish fighters and the Syrian Arab Army in Aleppo.
Barrack said in a statement that he held the meeting on behalf of US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during which he discussed “developments in Aleppo and the broader path forward for Syria’s historic transition.”
Clashes erupted between Kurdish fighters, also known as Asayish, in the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods of Sheikh Masqsood and Ashrafiyeh in Aleppo on Tuesday. Both sides trade blame for the fighting. Despite efforts by regional and Western countries to end the conflict, violence has continued, except for a brief ceasefire aimed at giving both sides time to negotiate.
The Syrian Arab Army claimed on Saturday that it had concluded the operation after controlling both quarters, but Asayish said the fighting continues in Sheikh Maqsood.
“President Trump recognizes this moment as a pivotal opportunity for a new Syria — a unified nation in which all communities, including Arab, Kurdish, Druze, Christian, Alawite, Turkmen, Assyrian, and others, are treated with respect and dignity and afforded meaningful participation in governance and security institutions,” read the statement by Barrack.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls the Kurdish region in northeast Syria (Rojava), signed an integration agreement with the new Syrian government in March.