Clashes in the north Syrian city of Aleppo left two civilians dead this week. They broke out after fighters associated with the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) fired on the Kurdish majority neighborhoods of Sheikh Maksoud and Ashrafiyeh, according to sources close to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The Asayish, the SDF’s internal security force, which is deployed in the two neighborhoods, responded to the fire. For its part, SANA, the official Syrian government news agency, asserted that the SDF had initiated the exchanges. The clashes immediately followed a visit by Turkishforeign minister Hakan Fidan to Damascus, where he met with his Syrian counterpart, Assad Shibani. In the course of the visit, Fidan harshly criticized the SDF for its failure to rapidly integrate into the armed forces of the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
At a joint press conference with Shibani, the Turkish foreign minister said, “We see that the SDF has no real intention of making significant progress in the negotiations on integration with the Damascus administration.”He added that “the fact that the SDF carries out some of its activities in coordination with Israel currently represents a major obstacle in the discussions being held with Damascus.” (Ed note: What does this all mean? It says that the Turks hate the Jews and the Kurds. Keep an eye on Syria.) (Read More)
