ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The co-chair of Germany\u2019s Left Party on Friday accused Berlin and the European Union of failing to clearly condemn attacks by Syria\u2019s interim government on Aleppo\u2019s Kurdish-majority neighborhoods, warning that continued political and financial support should be conditioned on protecting minorities and ending the violence.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is necessary to condemn these attacks that [interim Syrian President Ahmed] al-Sharaa’s government is now carrying out in Aleppo against the Kurds,\u201d Jan van Aken, co-chair of the Left Party, told Rudaw.<\/p>\n
Clashes between Damascus-affiliated forces and Kurdish-led internal security forces (Asayish) have destroyed hundreds of homes in Aleppo\u2019s Kurdish-majority Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods in recent days, displacing thousands, with tens reported killed. A brief ceasefire collapsed on Friday as Damascus-affiliated forces sought to expel Kurdish fighters from the city and transfer them to northeast Syria (Rojava). The local council administering the neighborhoods rejected the proposal, saying they would remain there and \u201cdefend\u201d the neighborhoods. The Asayish later said Sheikh Maqsood was under \u201cviolent and intensive bombardment\u201d by Damascus-affiliated factions.<\/p>\n
\u201cUndoubtedly, this is a crime, not only a crime against humanity, but also a crime against Syrian laws,\u201d van Aken said. \u201cThe people of Aleppo and [northeast Syria] Rojava should know that we, as the Left Party in Germany, are with them. I myself have been there several times. We sympathize with you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must clearly condemn this from Germany and from Europe. I expect this from my country’s chancellor, and I also expect it from Ursula von der Leyen, who is now in Syria. One cannot accept these attacks,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met Syria\u2019s Sharaa in Damascus on Friday, saying in a post on X that \u201cEurope will do everything it can to support Syria\u2019s recovery and reconstruction.\u201d<\/p>\n
She announced that the EU intends to provide around 620 million euros in financial support \u201cthis year and next.\u201d The package includes humanitarian aid, early recovery assistance, and \u201cbilateral support.\u201d She said the funding is \u201cnecessary\u201d to help Damascus \u201crestore the essential services for the population and to rebuild the state institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would like Syrians to have a real prospect of coming back home and rebuilding their lives here,\u201d von der Leyen said.<\/p>\n
Germany has recently increased deportations, drawing criticism from opposition and leftist parties over potential human rights violations. In November, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Syrians could face expulsion, stating that \u201cthere are now no longer any grounds for asylum in Germany, and therefore we can also begin with repatriations.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy fear is that the German government and Europe will say \u2018we will act as if the new Syrian government is very good and there is peace in Syria, so that we can deport many people back.\u2019 This is the real reason for Merz’s silence. This, in my opinion, is cowardly and hypocritical,\u201d van Aken said.<\/p>\n
He added that Germany and Europe should make clear to the transitional government under Sharaa that \u201cthis is not acceptable and you will not be supported if you continue killing minorities.\u201d<\/p>\n
EU and German officials have repeatedly said they are tying aid to the government\u2019s ability to protect all social, ethnic, and religious groups – including Christians, Alawites, and Kurds – and to prevent violence while transitioning toward a stable and inclusive government that would eventually lead to free and democratic elections.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is fighting there now. There is a war going on there. No one should be returned there at this time,\u201d Von Akend added. <\/p>\n
Derya Turk-Nachbaur, a lawmaker from Germany\u2019s Social Democratic Party (SPD), said they are \u201cmonitoring this situation with concern. We see thousands of people fleeing, leaving Aleppo, and the people are suffering. This is a source of great concern for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about her party\u2019s position, Turk-Nachbaur said it has taken a clear stance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe, as a faction, condemn it; we have done this in many places. It is necessary to protect or strengthen the foundations of the state so that democracy emerges there,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nShe added that minorities continue to face violence despite assurances that they would be included in Syria\u2019s reconstruction and governance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see minorities in Syria, as before, contrary to all those promises that supposedly they will participate in the reconstruction and administration of Syria, still have not been implemented,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see the expansion of violence, we see attacks on Druze, Alawites and Kurds. This is not in the interest of a stable region,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
Violence has persisted in parts of Syria since the ouster of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad by the now-dissolved jihadist group Hay\u2019at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Its former leader, Sharaa, now serves as interim president. Clashes left nearly 800 dead in the Druze-majority Suwayda province in mid-July and in Alawite-majority coastal regions in March, which war monitors say left nearly 2,000 people dead. Damascus and its affiliated forces have been held responsible for killing many civilians.<\/p>\n
Turk-Nachbaur placed responsibility on Syria\u2019s interim president to prevent further escalation and protect civilians. \u201cThe responsibility is with Sharaa; he is being asked and must work for it so that the state remains in peace and unity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She stressed that equal rights cannot be achieved through repression. \u201cThis cannot be done through oppression,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cForced expulsion is an assault on international humanitarian laws; minorities must not be oppressed, they must not be expelled. They, too, must receive those rights like everyone else,\u201d Turk-Nachbaur added.<\/p>\n
Germany\u2019s Foreign Office also expressed alarm. Tobias Tunkel, director of the Middle East and North Africa department, said he is \u201chighly alarmed\u201d by the violence in Aleppo.<\/p>\n
He said that during a call with Syrian Democratic Forces Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi, he \u201cstressed the need for implementation of March 10th agreement\u201d and that Germany is in contact with \u201call sides and urge them to stop fighting, resume negotiations and protect civilians at all costs.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
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