UPDATE - SDF forces open fire on civilians attempting to leave Aleppo neighborhoods: Media

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS; REVISES DISPLACEMENT TOLL; ADDS BACKGROUND

By Mohammad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - The PKK/YPG terror group, operating under the name of SDF, opened fire on civilians attempting to leave residential neighborhoods in Syria’s northern city of Aleppo, Syrian media reported on Wednesday.

Alikhbariya TV said SDF forces fired shots in an effort to prevent civilians from leaving the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh districts.

The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said SDF forces were preventing residents seeking to flee the two neighborhoods from reaching humanitarian corridors announced by the Syrian army.

According to SANA, the corridors are located in the Al-Awarid area and Zuhur Street and were designated to allow the safe exit of civilians amid SDF attacks.

Al-Ikhbariya reported that SDF forces fired heavy machine guns at residential buildings in the vicinity of Sheihan Roundabout and shelled the Al-Suryan neighborhood with artillery.

In a separate report, the outlet said artillery shells struck Tishreen Street, which leads to Sheihan Roundabout, adding that preliminary information indicated injuries, though no figures were immediately provided.

The Syrian Civil Defense earlier said that it had evacuated 2,324 civilians from Aleppo as of 02.40 pm local time (1440GMT), citing deteriorating humanitarian conditions and shelling by the SDF.

The reports come amid heightened tensions and displacements in parts of Aleppo as the SDF renewed shelling of residential neighborhoods in Aleppo for the second day on Wednesday morning, a day after at least five people were killed and 16 others injured in a series of attacks by the group in Aleppo on Tuesday.

The Syrian army said that military positions of the SDF in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods are “legitimate targets” following the group’s escalation and “massacres” in the province.

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.

Syrian authorities say that in the months since, the SDF has not shown any efforts to meet the terms of the agreement.