AANES condemns government threats against Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) expressed on Wednesday deep concern and condemnation over a statement issued by the Ministry of Defense of the Syrian transitional government, threatening Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo city, northwestern Syria.
The statement included threats to target the Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods in Aleppo, labeling them “legitimate military targets,” and calling for their evacuation through what it described as “temporary humanitarian corridors.”
In a statement, the AANES stressed that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are not present in these neighborhoods, noting that they are densely populated residential areas inhabited by civilians, the majority of whom are Kurds, including large numbers of people forcibly displaced from Afrin.
The AANES said that any attack on these areas would constitute a “flagrant violation of international humanitarian law” and a continuation of hostile policies targeting the Syrian people in all their components.
The AANES added that ongoing shelling and attacks on Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh, along with similar developments in other parts of the Syrian coast and the country’s south, contribute to undermining security, fueling further conflict, and pushing Syria farther away from a political solution and national consensus.
It also noted that “the other party has failed to adhere to the provisions of the April 1 agreement and has continued a policy of blockade and escalation, despite repeated attempts to open channels for dialogue.”
The AANES pointed out that the Ministry of Defense of the Syrian transitional government “even now rejects dialogue and insists on the language of threats and war.”
Reaffirming its rejection of any military escalation, the AANES stressed that the Syrian people are the greatest losers from the continuation of war and internal fighting.
It called on the Syrian transitional government to assume its moral and national responsibilities, return to dialogue as the only viable path to resolving disputes, and prevent the advancement of agendas that threaten Syria’s unity and future, according to the statement.