About 450 fighters of the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) left the neighborhoods of Ashrafiya and Sheikh Maqsoud in the northern part of the Syrian city of Aleppo on Friday in accordance with an agreement reached with the Syrian transitional government, Al Arabiya TV channel reported, citing its sources.
According to them, about 450 SDF fighters left Aleppo as part of the first group of evacuated militias. The agreement provides for the remaining Kurdish units in the neighborhoods of Ashrafiya and Sheikh Maqsoud to be included in the structures of the public security forces. In addition, according to the agreements reached, 170 SDF representatives and about 400 detained members of the Syrian security forces will be released from prison. Some of them have already been released in recent days.
The SANA news agency reported on Friday that the first columns of Kurdish fighters have left Aleppo towards the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, accompanied by Syrian security forces.
The Kurdish-populated neighborhoods have been under the protection of the militia since 2012. After the change of power in Damascus in December 2024, the new administration allowed Kurdish forces to remain in northern Aleppo for a while to ensure the safety of civilians.
On March 10, the interim President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, and the commander of the SDF, Mazloum Abdi, signed an agreement according to which the Kurdish fighters will be included in the armed forces of the transitional government. The parties agreed that all civilian and military facilities, including airports, dams, gas and oil fields, located in SDF-controlled territories in northeastern Syria will come under the authority of the new administration in Damascus.