Syrian army shells Kurdish areas of Aleppo declared 'closed military zones'

The Syrian army has declared the Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsud and Ashrafieh in Aleppo as closed military zones amid escalating violence. Government forces have begun bombarding the areas, which are controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and have opened humanitarian corridors for civilians to flee. Tensions have been rising between the new Syrian government, which is backed by Turkey, and the SDF since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad. The government accuses the SDF of carrying out "massacres," a charge the Kurdish group denies while accusing the army of indiscriminate shelling. This conflict complicates a stalled agreement to merge the SDF with the Damascus government, as Turkey continues to press for the dissolution of all pro-Kurdish armed groups.