Syrian president meets SDF amid ceasefire in Aleppo
DAMASCUS
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Oct. 7 met with YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) head Mazloum Abdi in the presence of U.S. officials, after deadly clashes overnight in Aleppo city.
It is the first encounter since July between Sharaa and Abdi and comes as implementation of a March deal between the two on integrating Kurdish institutions in the country's north and northeast into the state has largely stalled.
U.S. envoy for Syria and Ambassador to Türkiye, Tom Barrack, and Admiral Brad Cooper, head of the U.S. military's Central Command, were also attending in the meeting in Damascus.
The meeting came after Damascus and SDF agreed a ceasefire in Aleppo, after tensions between the two sides escalated into bombardments on the northern city.
At least one member of Syria's domestic security forces and a civilian were killed on Oct. 6 in bombardments on Aleppo attributed to Kurdish forces, Syrian state television reported.
Tensions have heightened between Damascus and the semi-autonomous Kurdish administration in north and northeast Syria.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based watchdog, separately said Syrian government forces used explosive drones in two Aleppo neighborhoods with Kurdish majority residents, Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh.
It said communications in those districts were cut and they were surrounded by Syrian army reinforcements.
Since the toppling of former leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Aleppo has been ruled by Syria's new authorities.
Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh, however, remain controlled by Kurdish units linked to the SDF.
State news agency SANA said several wounded civilians had been taken to hospital.
It later reported that the two sides reached a ceasefire agreement in both neighborhoods, without providing further detail.
Meanwhile, Syrian authorities announced results of elections for the first assembly to form since the ouster of longtime ruler Assad.
Women and minorities were under-represented in the weekend ballot for members of Syria's transitional parliament.
Electoral commission spokesperson Nawar Najmeh told a press conference that only four percent of the 119 members selected were women, noting the number "is not proportionate to the status of women in Syrian society and their role in political, economic and social life.”
Najmeh said only two Christians were among the winners, calling the representation "weak considering the proportion of Christians in Syria.”
He said that "perhaps the president's third could compensate" for some underrepresented components of Syrian society but rejected any quota system.
