In early January 2026, Syrian forces, backed by Turkish and jihadist groups, laid siege to Kurdish enclaves in Northern Syria, cutting off food, water & medicine and carrying out summary executions against civilians and local defenders. The siege culminated in the ethnic-cleansing of over 250,000 ethnic-Kurds from the cities of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh, fleeing under heavy shelling and drone attacks.
