Syria’s government accused the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces of attacks that it said killed 11 soldiers, raising doubts over a four-day ceasefire announced after days of fighting in the northeast.
Damascus said the incidents occurred on Wednesday, a day after the ceasefire was announced, and warned they risked derailing talks aimed at integrating the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces into the central state.
The government said seven soldiers were killed in a drone strike while securing a captured military base that contained explosives, calling it a dangerous escalation. The SDF denied carrying out any strike and said the blast happened while Syrian troops were moving explosives. It also accused government forces of violating the ceasefire with attacks in several locations.
Later on Wednesday, Damascus said a total of 11 soldiers had been killed and 25 wounded in SDF attacks on army positions since the ceasefire announcement. The SDF did not comment on that broader accusation.
After days of rapid government advances, Syria said on Tuesday it had reached an agreement with the SDF on a four-day ceasefire to allow negotiations on integration into the state, warning that failure to agree would lead to an assault on the last two main cities held by the group.
The confrontation has put into question years of Kurdish de facto autonomy in northeast Syria and could affect relations with the United States and Türkiye, as well as the fate of thousands of detained Islamist militants.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan, a key ally of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, said the SDF, which Ankara considers a terrorist group, must lay down its arms and disband to avoid further bloodshed.
The United States, which previously backed the SDF in the fight against IS, urged the group on Tuesday to accept Damascus’s offer. Washington said the reasons for its partnership with the SDF had expired, but it remained concerned about the fate of IS detainees held in facilities guarded by the group. The U.S. military said on Wednesday it had launched a mission to transfer IS prisoners from Syria to Iraq.
The SDF said on Tuesday it had accepted the ceasefire and would not carry out military action unless attacked. Its leader, Mazloum Abdi, has said the protection of Kurdish-majority areas is a “red line”.
Northeast Syria, wedged between the Turkish and Iraqi borders, includes areas with both Arab and Kurdish majorities and contains most of the country’s energy reserves. Syrian troops remained positioned outside the Kurdish-held cities of Hasakah and Qamishli on Wednesday, after bringing in reinforcements including tanks and other military vehicles the previous night.
The strategic balance in Syria has shifted over the past 13 months since forces led by al-Sharaa ousted former president Bashar al-Assad. Türkiye, which sees the SDF as linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party, is engaged in a peace process with the PKK and regards the end of SDF control in Syria as a key objective.
Erdoğan welcomed the ceasefire in remarks to parliament, saying he hoped the group’s full integration into the Syrian state would mark a new era. He and Donald Trump discussed Syria in a phone call overnight on Tuesday (20 January), including the issue of prisoners and the fight against IS.
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Türkiye is closely monitoring developments in Syria and considers the country’s unity and territorial integrity vital for regional stability, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told President Donald Trump during a phone call on Tuesday, according to Türkiye’s Communications Directorate.
Syria has announced a four-day ceasefire with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) after rapid government advances across the northeast.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reiterated his country’s support for a ceasefire deal between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which calls for the latter’s integration into the Syrian state apparatus.
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Several locally-developed instant messaging applications were reportedly restored in Iran on Tuesday (20 January), partially easing communications restrictions imposed after recent unrest.
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U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington would “work something out” with NATO allies on Tuesday, defending his approach to the alliance while renewing his push for U.S. control of Greenland amid rising tensions with Europe.
At the World Economic Forum’s “Defining Eurasia’s Economic Identity” panel on 20 January 2026, leaders from Azerbaijan, Armenia and Serbia discussed how the South Caucasus and wider Eurasian region can strengthen economic ties, peace and geopolitical stability amid shifting global influence.
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Azerbaijan’s State Oil Fund, State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ), has signed a long-term strategic cooperation agreement worth up to $1.4 billion with Brookfield Asset Management on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, officials said.
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