The Turkish state worked relentlessly to neutralize the Kurds in Syria before post-Baath political balances were formed and before any democratic system was established. It defined its primary objective as imposing the dominance of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and blocking any form of reconciliation between this group and the autonomous region. As soon as Aleppo fell, Ankara redirected the armed forces under its control toward Shahba and Manbij. Starting from these areas, it planned to dismantle the autonomous region through sustained military assaults.
This plan did not succeed. Subsequently, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Damascus government signed the 10 March Agreement. Under this framework, the parties agreed to unite in line with the terms of the accord, meaning that the SDF and the autonomous administration would be integrated into the newly established Syrian state. Turkey, however, continuously intervened in this process. It primarily insisted on the integration of the SDF. The SDF accepted this during the talks, and an understanding was reached for its incorporation into the army in the form of three divisions.
During the meeting held on 4 January 2026, the process was expected to be finalized and formally signed. Turkey intervened once again, preventing the agreement from being signed.
Meanwhile, talks were held in Paris between Israel and Syria under United States mediation. The full content of these talks has not been made public. However, it is clear that the United States gave a green light to attacks targeting the Kurds. Turkey had long harbored fears regarding Israel, concerned that it might support the Kurds. The Syrian government, for its part, calculated that it could not survive in the face of Israel and the United States without taking this reality into account. Turkey, meanwhile, was seeking in one way or another to secure support from the United States and to soften its contradictions with Israel. It appears that a certain understanding was reached on these issues in Paris, as attacks on Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo began on the second day of these talks.
After the start of the new year, Turkish officials escalated their threats. We have consistently tried to explain that the Turkish administration was attempting to turn the 10 March Agreement into a pretext for war. Yet the agreement was intended to bring an end to the climate of conflict and to pave the way for unity. The Turkish side, however, sought to put this into practice on the basis of eliminating the SDF and the autonomous administration. It repeatedly imposed ultimatums, warning, “If you do not do this, force will be used against you.”
HTS, meanwhile, failed to put forward an independent will. Instead of opposing this war-driven scenario, it sought to assert its authority by relying on support from the Turkish state. Had HTS possessed even a partial commitment to democratic principles, it would not have become a partner to this bloody game.
Turkey did not slow down its war preparations. Previously, it openly declared that it would carry out the attacks itself; this time, it began saying, “If the Syrian government requests it, we will provide all necessary support.” By portraying the war as an internal Syrian conflict, Turkey sought to evade responsibility. Yet when developments unfold in its favor, it does not hesitate to make its role visible. Indeed, once attacks began on Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo, the Turkish media fully took cover. The press treated it as its own war and launched a frontal assault against the Kurds. No one is unaware that well-known media outlets would not adopt such a stance without direct instruction from the government.
With their consciences and sight darkened, they attempted to convince the public that the defense forces stationed in the besieged Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo were attacking the Syrian army. These neighborhoods had organized only modest self-defense forces for more than a decade, solely to protect themselves against assaults by armed groups and the regime.
Moreover, on 1 April, an agreement had been reached with the HTS administration, stipulating that the defense of these neighborhoods would be left to local forces. How could such a local defense force possibly pose a threat to the Syrian army, or with what logic could it attack it?
As is evident, Turkish officials stretched the limits of reason and conscience in order to manufacture a pretext for the assault. HTS and the Syrian National Army (SNA) carried out brutal attacks, once again signing their names to crimes against humanity and war crimes. The Turkish media, for its part, ran headlines declaring that “neighborhoods under SDF occupation have been liberated.”
Will HTS and the SNA bring freedom to these two neighborhoods, which resisted both the regime and armed gangs and paid a heavy price for doing so? As is evident, wherever the SDF and local defense forces are absent, massacres and crimes against humanity follow.
Were the Alawite and Druze areas protected by the SDF? Had defense forces existed in those regions, the massacres in question could have been prevented. Instead, local populations were left defenseless, and mass killings were carried out directly against civilians. Today, the task of legitimizing these massacring, anachronistic forces and whitewashing their crimes has fallen to the Turkish media and officials.
As a result of initiatives undertaken to at least partially prevent further massacres, the defense forces withdrew from Aleppo. However, reports and footage soon began to circulate showing that HTS and the groups affiliated with it were adhering to no agreements and continuing their atrocities.
During the attacks in Aleppo, a horrific wave of anti-Kurdish hatred, resentment, and hate speech was unleashed. A deliberate environment is being created to deepen Kurdish–Arab tensions and to spread the conflict further. It is also clear that the attacks will not remain confined to Aleppo.
Acting as a mouthpiece for those in power, Abdulkadir Selvi has written that the button will be pressed in February to launch attacks in other areas. The suffering of millions of people, along with massacres and destruction, is normalized as if it were a game, framed in terms such as “the button will be pressed calmly.”
It is now imperative for everyone to focus on what can be done to confront and stop these bloody games.