Syrian soldier killed in clashes between government forces and SDF in Aleppo, state news agency says

A fighter of the the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army faction watches a plume of smoke erupt from bombardment at a position near the Tishrin Dam in the vicinity of Manbij, in the east of Syria's northern Aleppo province, on January 10, 2025 amidst ongoing battles with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. (FILE/AFP)
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Updated 12 August 2025
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Syrian soldier killed in clashes between government forces and SDF in Aleppo, state news agency says

  • Relations between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) remain caught between cautious cooperation and persistent mistrust

DUBAI: A Syrian soldier was killed in clashes between government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Aleppo, the Syrian state news agency said on Tuesday.
Relations between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) remain caught between cautious cooperation and persistent mistrust.

In March, Syria’s interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi signed a landmark deal to fold the SDF’s civilian and military structures— along with its control over checkpoints, airports, and oilfields— into state institutions, while guaranteeing Kurdish political rights and citizenship.

The agreement, hailed as a step toward national reconciliation, has since stalled, with Damascus recently pulling out of planned Paris talks, claiming the forum’s scope exceeded its mandate.

Yet dialogue continues, with a new SDF delegation arriving in the capital this week to push for implementation. On the ground, however, tensions simmer, as each side accuses the other of ceasefire violations and cross-border attacks in northern Syria.

With Agencies


Flash floods kill 21 in Moroccan coastal town

Updated 59 min 20 sec ago
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Flash floods kill 21 in Moroccan coastal town

RABAT: Flash-flooding caused by sudden, heavy rain killed at least 21 people in the Moroccan coastal town of Safi on Sunday, local authorities said.
Images on social media showed a torrent of muddy water sweeping cars and rubbish bins from the streets in Safi, which sits around 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of the capital Rabat.
At least 70 homes and businesses in the historic old city were flooded, authorities said.
Another 32 people were injured and taken to hospital, but most of them have been discharged.

Damage to roads cut off traffic along several routes to and from the port city on the Atlantic coast.
“It’s a black day,” resident Hamza Chdouani told AFP.
By evening, the water level had receded, leaving people to pick through a mud-sodden landscape to salvage belongings.
Another resident, Marouane Tamer, questioned why government trucks had not been dispatched to pump out the water.
As teams searched for other possible casualties, the weather service forecast more heavy rain on Tuesday across the country.
Severe weather and flooding are not uncommon in Morocco, which is struggling with a severe drought for the seventh consecutive year.
The General Directorate of Meteorology (DGM) said 2024 was Morocco’s hottest year on record, while registering an average rainfall deficit of -24.7 percent.
Moroccan autumns are typically marked by a gradual drop in temperatures, but climate change has affected weather patterns and made storms more intense because a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture and warmer seas can turbocharge the systems.