Asayish, SDF accuse sanctioned factions of war crimes against Kurds in Aleppo
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Kurdish-led Internal Security Forces (Asayish) in Aleppo and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) accused on Wednesday factions affiliated with the Syrian transitional government of committing war crimes during ongoing clashes in Aleppo’s Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh.
In statements released by the Asayish Media Center in Aleppo, the forces said civilians were deliberately targeted by armed factions listed on international sanctions regimes and previously implicated in documented massacres in Suwayda and Syria’s coastal cities.
The groups named include the Suleiman Shah (al-Amshat), Sultan Murad, al-Hamzat, and Nour al-Din al-Zenki factions.
According to Asayish, attacks on the two predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods have killed eight civilians and wounded 52 others, while shelling damaged at least 300 homes and dozens of medical and service facilities.
The forces said tanks, Grad rockets, artillery shells, missiles, and a suicide drone were used against residential areas and a local market.
Asayish further accused the factions of imposing a siege on Sheikh Maqsoud, threatening a full-scale invasion, and kidnapping young men to use them as human shields on the front lines—acts it described as grave violations of international humanitarian law.
In a separate statement, the SDF leadership said Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh have been under full siege for more than six months and pose no military threat to Aleppo.
It rejected claims of SDF military presence in the city, stressing that security responsibilities were handed to Asayish under a documented agreement.
The SDF called on guarantor states and Syrian government officials to immediately halt the siege and shelling, warning that continued attacks on civilians could plunge Syria back into widespread conflict.