Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after the government declared the area a closed military zone following days of clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
ALEPPO, Syria (AP) — Tens of thousands of civilians are fleeing their homes due to clashes between the government and Kurdish forces in a contested area in Syria’s northern city of Aleppo.
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An aerial view shows Syrian residents in vehicles, queueing to flee from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods after clashes broke out on Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighbourhoods after clashes erupted Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)Members of Syrian government forces deploy on the streets as they take over the Achrafieh neighborhood from Kurdish fighters during ongoing clashes that erupted Tuesday in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)A Syrian forces officer checks the IDs of residents fleeing the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after the government declared the area a closed military zone following days of clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighbourhoods after clashes erupted Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after the government declared the area a closed military zone following days of clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)A car burns during clashes between Kurdish fighters and Syrian government forces in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT – Medics treat a Syrian man at the Al-Razi Hospital, injured during ongoing clashes between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters, in Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Kafaa Abu Sheikh, right, the mother of Syrian girl Fatima al-Zahra, 4, checks on her daughter who was wounded when clashes broke out between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after the government declared the area a closed military zone following days of clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)Residents carry their belongings, as they are fleeing from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods after clashes broke out on Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)A Syrian government soldier helps an old woman who is fleeing from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods after clashes broke out on Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)A woman sits in a car with her bird as she is fleeing from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods, after clashes broke out on Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Members of Syrian government forces deploy on the streets as they take over the Achrafieh neighborhood from Kurdish fighters during ongoing clashes that erupted Tuesday in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Residents carry their belongings as they are fleeing from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods after clashes broke out on Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)Residents displaced from the Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods take shelter inside a mosque in Aleppo, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, after clashes erupted Tuesday between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of Aleppo. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
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