January 2026 Aleppo clashes
The January 2026 Aleppo clashes were a continuation of the broader SDF–Syrian transitional government clashes following the breach of a ceasefire agreement reached after clashes in December, which followed similar clashes in October.
On 10 January, the Syrian Democratic Forces and their affiliates reached a ceasefire agreement with the Syrian transitional government to withdraw their fighters to northeastern Syria.
Background
Clashes briefly erupted on 5–7 October and resulted in 3 deaths and over 26 injuries. Clashes renewed in December 2025, and resulted in 1 death and 9 injuries from both sides of the belligerents, as well as 4 deaths and 34 injuries among civilians. A ceasefire agreement was reached, while the SOHR reported that the Kurdish neighborhoods remained under siege, with electricity and water cut off, key roads closed, and internet services disrupted.Clashes
On 6 January 2026, clashes erupted in Aleppo. The Asayish forces targeted a Syrian government vehicle on the Castello Road in northern Aleppo, killing one soldier and injuring four others from the 72nd Division, the SOHR reported.On 7 January, clashes in Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafieh intensified, and were described as the harshest day of clashes. Syrian government declared all Asayish military positions in the neighborhoods to be "legitimate targets." At 15:00 p.m. local time a full scale combined arms assault was launched by the Syrian Army on the neighbourhoods. The Syrian Army attempted to enter the areas with armored vehicles, including tanks, but these efforts were repelled by the Asayish. According to the SOHR, fighting that day killed at least one Asayish member and four Syrian Army soldiers.
On 8 January, clashes continued as the Syrian Army was trying to infiltrate the neighbourhoods, artillery shelling struck the Othman Hospital in Sheikh Maqsood, killing 8 civilians and injuring nearly 60 others. Turkish drones reportedly provided support for Syrian Army ground incursions. In the late evening hours, Syrian Army forces, succeeded in partially infiltrating the Ashrafieh neighborhood after fighters from the al-Baggara tribe defected and opened access to the area, as fighting persisted throughout the night.
On 9 January, the Syrian government declared a unilateral ceasefire to take effect at 03:00 local time and offered Kurdish fighters in the neighborhoods the option to evacuate to Kurdish-controlled areas in Northeastern Syria, after having captured the Ashrafieh neigbourhood. The Syrian state news agency SANA reported that Syrian army buses had arrived in Aleppo to evacuate the remaining Asayish fighters from Aleppo. However, the Kurdish councils in the neighborhoods rejected the proposal, describing it as "a call to surrender," and stated that Kurdish forces would instead "defend their neighborhoods." Clashes continued throughout the rest of the day, accompanied by hours-long artillery shelling by government forces going into the night.
On 10 January, pro-government Syrian media declared that Syrian army forces entered parts of Sheikh Maqsood, while fighting persisted. Heavy fighting in Sheikh Maqsood led to five Asayish members carrying out a suicide attack on government forces, killing themselves while also killing and wounding several government fighters, according to the SOHR and Kurdish media. Later that day, the Syrian government declared a second ceasefire to take effect at 03:00 p.m. local time and outlined a plan for the relocation of Kurdish fighters. France 24 reported that "limited clashes" continued despite the Syrian Army's claims that it had taken control of Sheikh Maqsood, citing local sources. Before midnight, the Kurdish councils of the neighborhoods declared a "partial ceasefire" to allow the evacuation of the wounded and civilians.
Around 60 Asayish fighters surrendered to the Syrian Army and were subsequently sent to North East Syria on buses.
Aftermath
On 11 January, the final batch of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces fighters withdrew from the city of Aleppo. Aleppo Governor Azzam al-Gharib told Al Jazeera early on Sunday that Aleppo had become "empty of SDF fighters" after government forces coordinated their overnight withdrawal on buses out of the city. SDF commander Mazloum Abdi said the group had reached an understanding through international mediation that included a ceasefire and the safe evacuation of civilians and fighters. Reporting from Damascus, Al Jazeera correspondent Ayman Oghanna said that calm had returned to Aleppo and that the United States played an instrumental role in brokering the agreement between the SDF and the Syrian government.On 13 January, the Syrian Army declared Maskanah and Dayr Hafir in the eastern Aleppo countryside closed military zones. The Syrian Ministry of Defence accused the Syrian Democratic Forces of regrouping in the area, alleging that SDF forces had deployed Iranian-made drones to launch attacks on civilians in Aleppo and had destroyed three bridges linking SDF-controlled areas with government-held territory east of the city. The SDF denied the accusations, stating that it had not deployed forces to the Deir Hafer front. According to Al Jazeera, the past 24 hours saw what it described as a “very dangerous escalation,” as government forces redeployed and mobilised troops in eastern rural Aleppo amid tensions with the SDF.
On 13 January 2026, the Syrian transitional government launched an offensive against the SDF in the Kurdish-controlled regions of northeastern Syria. Initially focused on eastern Aleppo Governorate, around the towns of Dayr Hafir and Maskanah, the offensive expanded on 17 January to Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Al-Hasakah Governorates.
Human rights violations and war crimes
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented various human rights violations and actions it described as war crimes it alleged were committed by government forces. According to the SOHR, bombardments by the Syrian government on the densely populated residential areas of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafieh caused widespread material damage, displacement of civilians, and killings.Repeated heavy weapons strikes by government forces on the besieged Al-Shahid Khalid Fajr hospital in Sheikh Maqsood reportedly put it out of service, raising fears of a humanitarian disaster. This included the targeting of the hospital's generator by a Syrian government-operated suicide drone. Doctors said that the hospital's surroundings and interior were witnessing "horrific scenes, with blood everywhere and the wounded lying on the floor amid immense pressure and a severe shortage of medical supplies," and called on the international community to uphold its humanitarian and legal responsibilities. On 10 January, the Syrian government claimed that tunnels used by Kurdish fighters were located beneath the hospital, justifying the bombardment.
Two staff members of Ashrafieh's Othman Hospital were reportedly extrajudicially executed when government forces entered the neighborhoods, and the Syrian government rejected a request by the Kurdish Red Crescent and Syrian Red Crescent to evacuate wounded civilians from the besieged neighborhoods. Abuses of Kurdish fighters were also documented, including an instance where a fighter's body was dragged by a rope and insulted. In another, videos circulating online showed government forces throwing a female member of the Asayish from a building rooftop amid insults and verbal abuse. Civilians who fled the Sheikh Maqsood neighborhood were gathered by government forces and filmed in a humiliating scene by state media for "propaganda reasons", several of whom were later arrested and transferred to unknown locations.
Sanctions
After the January fighting in Aleppo multiple US senators began calling for the reintroduction of sanctions on Syria, and called for a strong reaction if fighting resumes. European Union members of parliament also called for the suspension of European aid to Syria due to the clashes.Other reports
Greek City Times reported that Syrian government forces issued maps and warnings designating a site in Sheikh Maqsood as a Kurdish military position and announcing that artillery shelling would follow. However, this claim was challenged by Antoine Mekhallale, a senior official of the Greek Melkite Catholic Church in Aleppo, who said in a social media post that the marked buildings were church-owned property housing up to 40 Christian civilian families, not an SDF military site.In a joint statement, several Syrian human rights watchdogs, including the Syria Justice and Accountability Center and Syrians for Truth and Justice, condemned the attacks on the neighborhoods and warned that the recent military escalation has raised serious concerns among local communities about the risk of new human rights violations.
Reactions
Domestic
- Druze community: Dozens of Druze staged a sit-in protest in Sweida in solidarity with residents of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafieh, holding Kurdish and SDF flags.
- Syria: President Ahmed al-Sharaa, in an interview with Shams TV, emphasized that the Syrian government approached the liberation operations responsibly, balancing military objectives with humanitarian concerns. He noted that the events in Aleppo, particularly in Sheikh Maqsoud, aimed to maintain security and stability, safeguard the country’s economic lifelines, and uphold the law following repeated attacks on residential areas and threats to public safety. He affirmed that the operation was successful, carried out with minimal cost, and ensured the safe evacuation of civilians.
International
- United States: President Donald Trump addressed the clashes, saying, "I want to see peace, yes, I do. The Kurds and the Syrian government, we get along with both, as you know very well. They have been natural enemies over the years, but we get along with both."
- Israel: Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar warned that attacks on Kurds in Aleppo are "dangerous and alarming" and that "the international community in general, and the West in particular, has a moral debt toward the Kurds who fought bravely and successfully against ISIS."
- Kurdistan Region: The influential Kurdish leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Masoud Barzani, criticized the bombardment of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafieh, raising serious concerns about possible ethnic-based targeting of Kurds. Similarly, Bafel Talabani, leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, expressed his "deep concerns" over the events in Aleppo.
- Kurds in Turkey : Thousands of protesters gathered in Diyarbakır and other Kurdish-majority cities in Turkey to denounce the Syrian government. Banners read "Defending Rojava means defending humanity," while demonstrators chanted slogans such as "Long live the resistance of Rojava," "Long live the resistance of Sheikh Maqsoud," "Women, life, freedom," and "Murderer HTS, collaborator ISIS."
- Kurdish diaspora: Several demonstrations were announced and held by the Kurdish diaspora in Germany, Austria, France, and Greece.
- : Pope Leo XIV called for peace and dialogue, saying that "persistent tensions are causing the deaths of many people."
- European Union: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the clashes in Aleppo as "worrying" during her visit to Damascus on 9 January 2026.