According to Syrian military sources, the operation began after the army published a map identifying a site in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood that it said was being used by SDF militias as a military position. The army claimed the location was being used to shell civilian neighborhoods in Aleppo, prompting the decision to strike.
Fighting was reported around the al-Shihan roundabout in northern Aleppo, where government forces made limited advances. Clashes also erupted near the Syriac Quarters and the Suleimaniyeh Center, south of the al-Ashrafiyeh district. Syrian troops attempted to storm those areas but were pushed back, suffering what sources described as significant casualties. Contrary to some early reports, Syrian government forces have not entered the al-Ashrafiyeh neighborhood, which remains under SDF control.
As the fighting intensified, the Syrian government issued five evacuation orders covering SDF-controlled areas in northern Aleppo. Residents were ordered to leave the Youth Housing Development, the Martyrs Housing area and April Park south of the al-Shaqif micro-district, two apartment blocks south of the Jewish Cemetery, several residential complexes west of al-Snoubari Park, and the area surrounding the Saad bin Waqqas Mosque and Montana Mall. (Ed note: Always keep one eye on the state of Syria.) (Read More)
