The attacks on the Sheikh Mahsoud and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods in Aleppo are also condemned by European intellectuals, writers, and politicians.
Nadine Maenza, chair of the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE) and President of IRF Secretariat, stated, “Under no circumstances can security be allowed to be left in the hands of the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) militias.”
Speaking to journalist Erem Kansoy, Maenza also called on the US and international authorities to immediately intervene to stop the attacks.
Nadine Maenza stated the following:
“I am told by residents in Aleppo that shelling and clashes have intensified, with explosions shaking the city, as Syrian government forces again attack the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods of Sheikh Maksoud and Ashrafiya.
In addition to Kurds, these neighborhoods are also home to Christians and Yazidis, many who have been displaced from Afrin. Even Nadia Murad shared on social media that she was getting urgent appeals from Yazidis, Christians, and Kurds who feared imminent threats.
While the Syrian government announced what they called a ceasefire last night and we all rejoiced, it really was not a ceasefire that they wanted. What they have demanded is a full withdrawal of local police (Asayish).
In no universe should these forces, made up of Turkish-backed Syrian National Army militias or the SNA, many who are Islamists sanctioned by the US, UK, and EU for their human rights abuses, foreign fighters or HTS fighters be allowed to take over security for religious minorities.
These communities know what that has meant elsewhere in Syria, and it would invite displacement and abuses, not protection. The U.S. and the international community must press for these attacks to stop and for the local police to be able to remain.”