The Syrian Defense Ministry announced Friday that a ceasefire would be in effect between 3 am and 9 am local time in the Ashrafieh, Sheikh Maqsoud and Bani Zeid neighborhoods in the northern city of Aleppo, as the city's governorate said the armed groups would be sent to Kurdish areas further east.
"In the coming hours, members of the SDF will be moved with their light weapons to the east of the Euphrates (river)," said a statement from Aleppo's media directorate, referring to the PKK/YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces.
The ministry has given armed groups until 9 am Friday to leave the neighborhoods to end the military situation, according to a ministry communique published by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
Authorities said the group failed to fully comply with withdrawal terms, prompting warnings from the ministry that targeted operations would continue if the transfer was not completed.
Vehicles arrived at the Lairamoun roundabout in Aleppo in preparation for entering the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood to transport the SDF elements, according to Alikhbaria TV.
The goal of the ceasefire is for civilians who were displaced by the fighting to be able "to return and resume their normal lives in an atmosphere of security and stability," the defense ministry said.
The governor of Aleppo, Azzam al-Gharib, told the official SANA news agency that he had inspected the security arrangements in the Ashrafiyeh neighborhood.
The United States welcomed the ceasefire in a post on X by its envoy Tom Barrack.
The U.S. Ambassador to Ankara and Special Representative for Syria, Barrack, stated that they are working to extend the ceasefire after 9 am.
Barrack noted that they hope this weekend will lead to more lasting calm and deeper dialogue through sustainable cooperation, stating, “This truce begins the vital work of guiding Syria’s diverse lanes—its communities and neighboring nations—onto a single shared highway toward security, inclusion, and lasting peace. Speed bumps will arise, but our common destination clearly favors cooperation over confrontation."
The Interior Ministry said internal security forces began deploying to the Ashrafieh neighborhood on Thursday, following the withdrawal of the PKK/YPG terror group operating under the name SDF.
The deployment came after a large number of SDF members defected in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods, while others fled.
The army began heavy and focused shelling of SDF positions in Aleppo early Thursday in retaliation for attacks by the group that killed at least nine civilians and injured dozens.
On March 10, 2025, 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 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.
