On the ninth day of relentless attacks by jihadist groups affiliated with Turkey in the regions of Aleppo (Haleb), Hama, and Manbij (Minbic)—displacing over 200,000 residents from the Shahba (Şehba) region—the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) issued two statements on 4 December. While emphasising their fight against Turkish-backed mercenaries, the SDF categorically denied any advances towards villages east of Aleppo.
Farhad Shami, the SDF spokesperson, posted on the X platform:
“Several Turkish occupation-backed mercenaries were eliminated and others were injured during fierce clashes with the Manbij Military Council in the southern countryside of Manbij and with the Tabqa Military Council forces in the Deir Hafer area. These clashes took place from yesterday morning to today morning.”
Reaffirming the SDF’s commitment to protecting civilians, Shami added: We reaffirm our readiness to counter all terrorist attacks.
Addressing misinformation propagated by hostile media outlets about alleged SDF movements towards eastern Aleppo, Shami clarified that there had been no changes to their military deployment. He stated:
“On the contrary, over the past two days, our forces have successfully repelled multiple attacks launched by Turkish occupation mercenaries targeting areas under the control of the Military Councils of Manbij and Tabqa. Many mercenaries were neutralised, and some fell into the hands of our fighters.”
With the onset of attacks by the Turkish backed Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Syrian National Army (SNA) in northern Syria, threatening Kurdish people and other ethnicities, the SDF has reaffirmed its commitment to resisting offensives by Islamist forces, while prioritising the protection of civilians.
