ISTANBUL
Four journalists were wounded Thursday in an attack by the PKK/YPG terror group operating under the name of SDF on the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said the SDF strike targeted the outskirts of the Ashrafieh neighborhood of Aleppo.
Syrian internal security forces began deploying in the neighborhood following the withdrawal of SDF groups.
The Syrian army began heavy and focused shelling of SDF positions in Aleppo on Thursday in retaliation for attacks by the group that killed at least nine civilians and injured dozens.
The army attacks came after SDF forces renewed their shelling of residential neighborhoods in the city for the third consecutive day Thursday.
On March 10, the Syrian presidency announced the signing of an agreement for the SDF’s integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country's territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.
Authorities said in the months since, the SDF has not shown any efforts to meet the terms of the agreement.
The Syrian government has intensified efforts to maintain security across the country since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on Dec. 8, 2024, after 24 years in power.