Syrian government forces have detained 300 Kurdish fighters and evacuated more than 400 others from Aleppo after days of clashes, the interior ministry has said. The operations came as US and allied forces carried out separate large-scale strikes against Islamic State (ISIS) targets in Syria.
The clashes erupted after negotiations to integrate Kurdish forces into Syria’s new government stalled. Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) had controlled parts of Aleppo and operate a de facto autonomous administration in the north and north-east. A ceasefire brokered by international mediators allowed the evacuation of fighters, wounded and civilians from the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh districts.
The violence has deepened faultlines in post-Assad Syria, with Turkey expressing readiness to intervene and Israel siding with Kurdish forces. At least 21 civilians have been killed and 155,000 displaced, according to local officials. The interior ministry confirmed that 300 Kurds, including members of Kurdish internal security forces, were detained.
The US Central Command said the strikes on Saturday targeted ISIS throughout Syria as part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, launched in response to a deadly ISIS attack on 13 December that killed two US soldiers and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra. Jordan also participated in the strikes. The jihadist group retains a presence in Syria's desert despite its territorial defeat in 2014.
