Rights Report Alleges Arbitrary Arrests and Abuse of Kurds During Aleppo Escalation

A new report by Syrians for Truth and Justice (STJ) alleges that forces affiliated with Syria’s transitional government carried out arbitrary arrests, abuse and possible enforced disappearances of Kurdish civilians during the January 2026 military escalation in Aleppo.

According to the report, which was published in the weekend, the predominantly Kurdish neighbourhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh were subjected to a consistent pattern of violations between 6 and 12 January, as government forces consolidated control amid clashes with Kurdish-led units.

Checkpoints Become Sites of Detention

STJ states that checkpoints and so-called humanitarian corridors—established to allow civilians to flee the fighting—became locations where men and boys were separated from women, screened for alleged links to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and, in many cases, taken to undisclosed locations.

Residents identified the al-Awarid crossing as the centre of these operations. Witnesses described armed personnel, including members of the Internal Security Forces, tribal fighters and foreign combatants, checking identities, recording names and preventing many men from leaving.

One witness said:

“They separated the men from the women and told us the women could leave, but the men would be detained. Despite our attempts to explain that they were civilians, they took all the men. I even saw a child among them.”

Another resident recounted seeing men forced to lie on the ground, beaten and loaded onto buses bound for unknown destinations.

Escalation and Mass Displacement

The escalation followed renewed fighting in Aleppo after a fragile ceasefire reached at the end of December 2025 collapsed. On 7 January, the transitional government announced a military operation against what it described as SDF positions in Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh. The SDF denied maintaining forces inside the neighbourhoods, saying security responsibility had already been transferred to the Kurdish Internal Security Forces, known as the Asayish.

By 8 January, authorities had ordered civilians to evacuate Sheikh Maqsoud, Ashrafieh and nearby Bani Zeid, designating two exit routes and dozens of shelters across the governorate. The United Nations estimated that around 148,000 people were displaced.

STJ argues that the designated corridors functioned less as humanitarian routes than as security screening points. Men were reportedly detained without being told why, where they were being taken or how long they would be held.

Accounts of Beatings and Threats

Former detainees described being beaten, insulted and threatened during arrest and transfer. One man said security personnel confiscated his phone, wallet and cash before beating him with rifle butts and accusing him of supporting the SDF.

He recalled being told:

“We will kill you.”
When he insisted he was a civilian, one of the personnel replied that he would “make him wish for death and never find it.”

Others described overcrowded holding sites where dozens of detainees were kept together, insults were routine and those who asked to use the bathroom returned beaten.

Disappearances and Unidentified Bodies

The report documents a series of disappearances. Families said they lost contact with relatives after they attempted to flee or after they were detained at checkpoints. In many cases, no authority informed them where their relatives had been taken.

One man from Afrin said his brother called him from Sheikh Maqsoud amid heavy gunfire and promised to call back. He has not been heard from since. Another family said a father and daughter disappeared after being wounded and detained while trying to leave the neighbourhood.

Concerns intensified after local sources reported that dozens of bodies had been transferred to Aleppo’s Forensic Medicine Centre, with some estimates placing the number as high as 272. Rights groups said more than 100 of the bodies may belong to civilians killed during the operation, though authorities have not released an official list of names or causes of death.

The report notes that some bodies were buried before they could be identified because the morgue lacked capacity.

Legal Violations and Calls for Accountability

STJ argues that the documented practices violate both Syrian law and international human rights standards. It says the detentions breached Article 18 of Syria’s 2025 Constitutional Declaration, which prohibits arrest without judicial authorisation, as well as Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The organisation further states that the lack of information about detainees’ whereabouts could, in some cases, constitute enforced disappearance under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. It also accuses security personnel of subjecting detainees to degrading treatment prohibited under Syrian anti-torture legislation and international law.

STJ called on the Syrian authorities to disclose the fate of all missing persons, review every detention carried out during the Aleppo operation and release anyone held without legal grounds. It also urged the government to open independent investigations into allegations of abuse, ensure judicial oversight of detention centres and allow detainees to communicate with their families.

Although a ceasefire and broader agreement between the transitional government and the SDF were reached on 18 January, the report says many residents who have returned to Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh continue to live in fear, amid ongoing arrests, night raids and deep uncertainty over the fate of missing relatives.

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