Escalation in Motion: Syrian Army Redeploys, Igniting Fresh Aleppo Fighting
The Syrian Arab Army has sent reinforcements from Latakia toward Deir Hafer, escalating clashes with the SDF, which reported artillery, drone, and infiltration attacks across eastern Aleppo.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Military escalation intensified around eastern Aleppo as the Syrian Arab Army redeployed forces from the country’s coastal areas toward the Deir Hafer front, triggering a new wave of clashes, drone strikes, and artillery fire across areas held by the Syrian Democratic Forces.
Syrian state media SANA reported that the Syrian Arab Army dispatched military reinforcements from Latakia province toward the Deir Hafer front in eastern Aleppo. The deployment comes amid renewed fighting following deadly clashes in Kurdish-majority neighborhoods of Aleppo.
According to statements issued by the Syrian Democratic Forces, “Syrian army-affiliated factions” carried out multiple attacks targeting areas under SDF control. The SDF said the vicinity of the strategic Tishreen Dam was attacked twice using suicide drones and artillery shelling, while rocket strikes also hit the village of Umm al-Marra, south of Deir Hafer, as part of what it described as an ongoing military escalation.
In a further update, the SDF said its forces repelled an infiltration attempt by “Damascus-affiliated factions” along the axis of Zubaida village in the southern countryside of Deir Hafer. The attackers were forced to retreat after the attempt failed, despite the use of drone cover and automatic weapons.
The SDF also reported that, amid what it called deliberate escalation, a Turkish Bayraktar drone struck one of its positions in the village of al-Buassi, near the city of Tabqa. The attack resulted in several injuries among SDF fighters, who were transferred for medical treatment. The SDF described the incident as the third such drone strike within a single week.
Later updates from the SDF media said “Damascus-affiliated factions” continued shelling the town of Deir Hafer with artillery. In another reported development, the SDF said infrastructure in the town, including the Deir Hafer post office building, was targeted by artillery fire and suicide drones, without casualties being recorded.
The Syrian Arab Army had earlier declared several SDF-held areas in Aleppo countryside, including Deir Hafer, as “closed military zones,” prior to launching its attacks.
The SDF has repeatedly warned that Damascus intends to carry out further military operations against its forces, attributing the escalation to encouragement from regional allies of Syria’s Islamist-led government. In recent days, Damascus reiterated claims that it detected the arrival of additional armed groups at SDF-held positions near Deir Hafer and Maskanah, alleging that the reinforcements included “PKK fighters and individuals linked to the former Bashar al-Assad regime.”
The SDF, however, rejected those claims on Monday, describing reports of troop build-ups in eastern Aleppo as misleading and accusing Damascus of attempting to manufacture tension and create pretexts for escalation.
As reinforcements arrive from Syria’s coast and clashes intensify across eastern Aleppo, the exchange of accusations and expanding military operations signal a volatile phase that continues to deepen instability around Deir Hafer and its surrounding areas.