Damascus, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) warned that Turkey’s escalating and direct intervention in Syria could lead to a wider regional conflict, amid intensified Turkish drone strikes and continued overflights by warplanes across parts of northern and eastern Syria.
In a field update on Wednesday, the SDF said a Turkish Bayraktar drone targeted one of its military points in the village of Al-Bu‘assi, in the countryside of the city of Tabqa, wounding several fighters who were transferred for medical treatment. The SDF noted that the attack marked the third Turkish drone strike within a single week.
In a separate update, the SDF said another Turkish Bayraktar drone targeted one of its military points in the town of Maskanah, in eastern Aleppo countryside, without causing injuries. It described the strike as the second such attack on the same day, calling it a sign of a “serious and ongoing escalation” in the region.
On Jan. 10, the SDF announced that a Turkish Akinci drone targeted, at around 6:00 p.m., one of its military points in the Thawra Oil Field area south of Tabqa, causing material damage.
It said the attack was the first of its kind since the signing of a de-escalation agreement following the Tishrin Dam battle, constituting a clear breach of existing understandings and reflecting Turkey’s insistence on playing a direct military role inside Syrian territory.
The SDF added that Turkish warplanes continue to fly over the region, stressing that it is closely monitoring developments on the ground.
In the same context, the SDF said the town of Dayr Hafir, in Aleppo eastern countryside, has been witnessing intensive Turkish drone activity involving both Bayraktar and Akinci models, along with loitering munition attacks and artillery shelling targeting the town and surrounding villages, as well as the Thawra Oil Field area—developments it said “raise many questions and suspicions.”
The SDF said it was presenting these facts to public opinion, noting that it had published documented images of remnants from Turkish Bayraktar drone munitions that struck an institution in the Maskanah area.
“Military zone”
These developments come amid a parallel escalation following the Syrian transitional government’s Ministry of Defense announcement on Tuesday designating the towns of Dayr Hafir and Maskanah as a “military zone,” despite both areas being under SDF control.
The Syrian army’s Operations Directorate issued a “warning,” stating that Dayr Hafir, Babiri Qawas, and Maskanah were closed military zones, citing alleged SDF troop build-ups and claiming they serve as launch points for Iranian loitering drones that shelled the city of Aleppo.
The SDF, for its part, denied what it described as “misleading statements” issued by Damascus’ Ministry of Defense regarding the situation around Maskanah and Dayr Hafir, asserting that the movements on the ground were primarily carried out by factions affiliated with the Damascus government itself.
In a statement, the SDF said repeating these claims for a second time “constitutes an attempt to manufacture tension and create pretexts for escalation,” holding those behind the statements fully responsible for any potential repercussions.
The escalation follows last week’s announcement by the Syrian Ministry of Defense of the launch of a military operation in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods, where intense clashes broke out between Asayish forces and government troops. The fighting ended with the withdrawal of Kurdish fighters to areas east of the Euphrates under understandings reached between the SDF and Damascus.
The SDF warned that the continuation of direct Turkish intervention, alongside ongoing field tensions and escalatory steps by multiple parties, could push the situation toward a broader explosion and undermine any chances for de-escalation and stability in northeastern Syria and the region as a whole.