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Raqqa ceasefire agreement
After days of intense fighting in the southeastern Raqqa countryside around Maadan, Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) agreed to de-escalate and observe a ceasefire.
“After days of heavy clashes in the southeastern Raqqa countryside, Syrian government forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) agreed to de-escalate and observe a ceasefire, halting artillery strikes and mutual targeting, local pro-government sources told dpa.”
They halted artillery strikes and mutual targeting following a meeting that local pro-government sources and a German news agency said was coordinated with the international coalition.
Reports describe recent clashes that involved infiltrations, shelling with heavy and medium weapons, and drone strikes.
The violence produced dead and wounded on both sides and prompted calls to adhere to the March 10 agreement.
Syrian army and SDF clashes
The Syrian army publicly refused SDF calls to withdraw from positions that the SDF said it had seized.
Government sources say pro-government forces retook those positions after counterattacks.
State and pro-government reports blame the SDF for staging an assault and cite soldier casualties—many mention two killed and several wounded—while local SDF statements say strikes hit positions used to launch ISIS drones.
SDF defensive justification
The SDF stated that its actions were defensive.
“The SDF said it shot down two ISIS drones launched from government-held areas near the village of Ghanem al-Ali and framed its action as a response to ISIS activity in the nearby desert.”
It told international agencies and local outlets it had targeted positions allegedly used by ISIS to launch drones at SDF forces.
The SDF also said it was responding to ISIS activity in the nearby desert.
Several sources relay the SDF's claims that its operations were aimed at countering ISIS rather than initiating an offensive against the Syrian army.
Clashes and political agreement
Observers and regional outlets place the clashes in a broader political context.
The incidents come months after a March 10 agreement between Damascus and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi to integrate parts of the SDF into state structures and transfer control of oil, gas and crossings, a deal whose implementation remains disputed.
While Al-Jazeera and وكالة صدى نيوز stress adherence to that March agreement in calls for calm, thenationalnews highlights ongoing political friction over decentralisation and Abdi’s insistence on local governance, which Damascus rejects.
Discrepancies in casualty reporting
State and pro-government media commonly report two soldiers killed and multiple wounded, while monitoring groups and some outlets report higher tolls.
“the army said it retook positions that SDF fighters had infiltrated, where two soldiers were killed and nine wounded.”
Al Jazeera and local sources also quote allegations that the dead were mutilated, though that claim is not universally repeated.
The variation in casualty counts and the presence or absence of graphic allegations illustrate how different source types, including state media, regional outlets, international wire services and monitoring groups, prioritise different details.