Syria’s Health Ministry said Saturday that the PKK/YPG group has taken control of a hospital in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, expelling medical personnel and converting the facility into a fortified military position.
According to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the Health Ministry said: "The PKK terrorist organization and armed groups affiliated with it expelled staff and doctors from Yassin Hospital in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of the city of Aleppo and turned it into a military point they are fortifying themselves in, after fleeing before the Syrian Arab Army."
The ministry warned civilians against approaching the facility, stressing safety concerns.
Separately, a military source told SANA that a PKK/YPG terrorist blew himself up near Syrian Army forces in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsoud, with no casualties reported among the army ranks.
The Syrian Army announced Saturday the completion of a full security sweep of the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood amid escalation with the PKK/YPG terror group.
Since Tuesday, the PKK/YPG has shelled residential neighborhoods, civilian facilities, and Syrian Army positions in Aleppo.
The attacks have killed nine people and wounded 55 others, and triggered the displacement of about 165,000 residents from the Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhoods.
YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the PKK terrorist organization, which killed at least 40,000 people in a decadeslong terror campaign in Türkiye, Iraq and Syria. An initiative is underway in Türkiye to disarm and dissolve the group.
On March 10, 2025, the Syrian presidency announced the signing of an agreement for the YPG’s integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country's territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.
Authorities said, in the months since, the YPG has not shown any efforts to meet the terms of the agreement.
The government has intensified efforts to maintain security across the country since the ouster of the Assad regime in December 2024, after 24 years in power.
