Several people have been killed in fighting between Syrian government forces and a Kurdish-led militia in the northern city of Aleppo, after two days of deadly clashes that have closed schools, government offices and an airport.
The fighting has been some of the most intense between government forces and the militia, the Syrian Democratic Forces, and comes as efforts to integrate the group into the national military appear to have stalled.
Since the start of the violence on Tuesday, at least four civilians have been killed in government-held areas of the city, health officials in Aleppo said on Wednesday. One soldier was also killed, according to SANA, the government news agency. The S.D.F. said seven civilians had been killed in the two neighborhoods that it controls, but it has not disclosed if any combatants have died.
The exchanges of fire between government forces and the S.D.F. resumed on Wednesday after a brief lull in the violence, according to residents, SANA and the S.D.F. Each side has blamed the other for starting the clashes.
The government said on Wednesday that it had imposed a curfew on the two neighborhoods as it sought to stop S.D.F. attacks and restore security, according to SANA.
The government has said that all S.D.F. military positions there would be considered legitimate military targets, according to state media, and warned people to stay away from the sites. It also announced the opening of two humanitarian corridors for people to leave the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods.
Relations with the Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls much of the country’s northeast, have been one of the biggest challenges for the central government since it took power after the ouster of the dictator Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. Talks over integrating the S.D.F. forces into the new Syrian military and extending central government control over S.D.F. areas have dragged on for months and repeatedly stalled.
The tensions between the government and the S.D.F. reflect the broader challenge of reuniting Syria after nearly 14 years of a brutal civil war that at times played along ethnic and religious lines in the country. The government, led by former Islamist rebels, has struggled to gain the trust of some minority communities.
