Damascus, Jan. 10 (SANA) Syria’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that government forces carried out a “limited and targeted” law-enforcement operation in two neighborhoods of Aleppo, with the aim of restoring public order and protecting civilians, following repeated violations by elements of the SDF organization.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said the operation was confined to Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafieh districts following armed attacks launched from the two neighborhoods on Jan. 7 and 8 and targeted residential areas of Aleppo and resulted in civilian deaths.
The Ministry added that these measures were undertaken, in line with the Syrian state’s commitment to transparency, the rule of law, and the principles of non-discrimination, with the aim of restoring public order and protecting civilians, following repeated violations of the agreed security arrangements with the People’s Protection Units affiliated with the Democratic Union Party, which resulted in harm to civilians.
Since the date of liberation on 8 December 2024, the Syrian government has pursued a comprehensive national approach aimed at unifying the security track and consolidating the authority of legitimate state institutions as a fundamental prerequisite for stability, the statement added.
The Ministry clarified that security agreements were concluded in April 2025 with the objective of ending all non-state military manifestations in the two neighborhoods but these agreements subsequently deteriorated as a result of repeated violations, including armed attacks launched from within the two neighborhoods against residential areas of the city of Aleppo on 7 and 8 January 2026, which resulted in civilian casualties.
It affirmed that this intervention “does not constitute a military campaign, does not entail any demographic change, and does not target any population group on ethnic or religious grounds,” adding that the operation was limited to specific armed groups operating outside any agreed security framework, whose activities obstructed the implementation of previous understandings and were linked to serious violations, including the recruitment of minors.
The ministry emphasized that the Syrian state has “accorded the highest priority to the protection of civilians through the establishment of advanced response points and the opening of safe humanitarian corridors” for civilians in cooperation with humanitarian organizations.
The statement added that the Syrian government will survey affected areas and remove explosive remnants of war as a preparatory step towards the restoration of normal civilian life in the neighborhoods.
The Ministry underscored that the measures “do not target the Kurdish community, which is considered an integral part of Aleppo’s social fabric and an active partner in national institutions,” noting that restoring the exclusive authority of the state over weapons is a fundamental condition for supporting stability and the political process, and for preventing the use of Syrian territory as a platform for any armed activity that threatens regional security.
The Ministry concluded by expressing appreciation and gratitude to the United States of America, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the State of Qatar, the Republic of Türkiye, the French Republic, the United Kingdom, and Masoud Barzani, “for their active and constructive role in supporting Syria’s stability and in upholding the unity and sovereignty of its territory, contributing to the strengthening of security and peace across the region as a whole.”
