By Mahmoud Hasano and Orhan Qereman
ALEPPO, Syria, Jan 9 (Reuters) – Kurdish groups in Aleppo vowed to defend their neighbourhoods from government forces on Friday, rejecting ceasefire terms declared by Damascus that demand Kurdish fighters withdraw from the Syrian city where clashes have raged this week.
The violence in Aleppo has exposed a deep faultline between President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s Islamist-led government and Kurdish forces, which have resisted its efforts to bring their fighters under centralised authority.
At least nine civilians have been killed and more than 140,000 have fled their homes. Neither the government nor the Kurdish forces have announced a toll of casualties among their fighters.
The ceasefire announced by the defense ministry overnight demanded the withdrawal of Kurdish forces to the Kurdish-held northeast. That would effectively end Kurdish control over pockets of Aleppo held by Kurdish forces since the early days of the Syrian conflict which began in 2011.
But in a statement, Kurdish councils that run the Sheikh Maksoud and Ashrafiyah districts of Aleppo said calls to leave were “a call to surrender” and that Kurdish forces would instead “defend their neighbourhoods”, accusing government forces of intensive shelling.
US HOPING FOR CALM
The ceasefire said Kurdish forces should withdraw by 9 a.m. (0700 GMT) on Friday, but no one withdrew overnight, according to Syrian security sources.
Tom Barrack, the U.S. envoy for Syria, had earlier welcomed what he called a “temporary ceasefire” and said Washington was working intensively to extend it beyond the 9 a.m. deadline. “We are hopeful this weekend will bring a more enduring calm and deeper dialogue,” he wrote on X.
Washington has been closely involved in efforts to promote integration between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – which has enjoyed U.S. military support for more than a decade – and the Damascus government.
However, little has been achieved since the sides signed a framework agreement in March, 2025, which had called for the process to be completed by the end of last year.
A Reuters reporter at the scene in Aleppo saw more than a dozen empty buses entering Sheikh Maksoud on Friday morning. Government security sources said they were expected to carry Kurdish fighters towards eastern parts of Syria held by Kurdish forces.
Neighbouring Turkey views the SDF as a terrorist organisation linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and has warned of military action if the group does not honour the integration agreement.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, speaking on Wednesday before the ceasefire was announced, expressed hope that the situation in Aleppo would be normalized “through the withdrawal of SDF elements”.
Kurdish fighters of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) established autonomous rule across large areas of northern Syria after the eruption of the war in 2011, later becoming the spearhead of the U.S.-backed SDF.
YPG head of media relations Siamand Ali did not respond to a request for comment on the evacuation.
(Additional reporting by Orhan Qereman in Syria, Huseyin Hayatsever in Ankara, Jana Choukeir in Dubai; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
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