Friday 09/January/2026 – 03:04 AM
At dawn on Friday, the Syrian Ministry of Defense announced a ceasefire around the neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud, Ashrafieh, and Bani Zeid in the city of Aleppo.
The Ministry said, in a statement, that the ceasefire began at 03:00 after midnight, asking the armed groups in the neighborhoods to leave the area within a period of time, starting from the ceasefire, until 09:00 am on Friday. She confirmed that the militants can leave by carrying only their light individual weapons, adding that the Syrian army pledges to accompany them and ensure their passage in complete safety until they reach the northeastern regions of the country.
Syrian Defense announces a ceasefire in Aleppo
She said that this measure aims to end the military situation in these neighborhoods, in preparation for the return of the rule of law and official institutions, as well as to enable the people who were forced to forcibly leave their homes to return to them, to resume their normal lives in an atmosphere of security and stability.
She called on those concerned to strictly adhere to the specified deadline, to ensure the safety of everyone and to prevent any field friction, indicating that the Internal Security Forces, in coordination with the Operations Authority of the Syrian Army, will arrange the mechanism for the armed groups’ exit from the neighborhoods towards northeastern Syria.
Hours before the statement, Syrian army units extended their control over most of the Ashrafieh neighborhood, one of the neighborhoods occupied by the SDF organization in the city of Aleppo in the north of the country. The Syrian Interior Ministry spokesman explained that the Achrafieh neighborhood “has become a friend” and that “progress continues on the other axes,” noting that the ministry’s units are working “to secure the Achrafieh neighborhood from mines, as SDF forces have mined homes and shops.”
