Turkish, Syrian foreign ministers discuss situation in Aleppo

ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Syrian counterpart Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani on Friday discussed the situation in the city of Aleppo in a phone call, said Turkish diplomatic sources.

The terrorist organization YPG/SDF has carried out attacks on multiple locations in Aleppo from areas it has occupied since Jan. 6, according to Syrian officials.

Damascus had called on the group to comply with the agreement reached last March 10 and to halt its attacks.

As the assaults continued, the Syrian army launched targeted operations against the group’s positions in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyah neighborhoods, which were under its occupation.

Last March 10, the Syrian presidency announced the signing of an agreement for the terrorist group YPG/SDF’s integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country's territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.

But in the months since, authorities say, the terrorist group has not shown any efforts to meet the terms of the agreement.

The government has intensified efforts to maintain security across the country since the ouster of the Assad regime in December 2024, after 24 years in power.

Since Jan. 6, at least nine Syrians have been killed and 55 people – most of them civilians –wounded in attacks carried out by the group.

The Aleppo City Center Committee said this week that 142,000 people had been evacuated to safe areas within the city.