Residents carry their belongings as they flee from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighbourhoods after clashes broke out on January 6, 2026, between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, on January 7, 2026. | Photo Credit: AP
The Syrian army began shelling Aleppo’s Kurdish-majority neighbourhoods on Wednesday (January 7, 2026), after the deadline given for civilians to leave the area had passed, an AFP correspondent said.
The military had declared the city’s Kurdish-controlled districts “closed military zones” from 3:00 p.m. (1200 GMT), while creating “two safe humanitarian crossings” through which thousands of civilians had fled before the deadline, according to AFP correspondents.
This is a developing story
Published – January 07, 2026 06:45 pm IST
