DAMASCUS, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army on Friday declared the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood in Aleppo a closed military zone and imposed an indefinite curfew after Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters rejected an offer to withdraw from the area by an evening deadline, the Syrian army said.
According to the Syrian Arab Army Operations Command, the deadline for the departure of civilians and armed elements from Sheikh Maqsoud expired at 6:00 p.m. local time. Shortly afterward, the army announced that the neighborhood would be treated as a closed military area and that a full curfew would take effect starting at 6:30 p.m. until further notice.
Earlier in the day, Syrian government forces completed their deployment in the neighboring Ashrafieh neighborhood following the withdrawal of SDF fighters, part of a broader plan announced by authorities to restore state control and public services in contested areas of Aleppo.
A military source cited by the state-run SANA news agency said SDF-linked forces carried out drone attacks targeting several civilian and security sites across Aleppo on Friday, causing injuries and material damage.
The latest measures follow days of intense clashes, shelling and drone strikes in and around Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh, which have displaced tens of thousands of civilians and sharply escalated tensions between Syrian government forces and the SDF, despite ongoing political talks on military integration.
In parallel, Syrian authorities moved to tighten control over routes linking SDF-controlled territories in northern and eastern Syria. ■
