Syria’s President Affirms Kurds’ Rights, in Overture to the Minority NYT | Top Stories Christina Goldbaum 17 January 2026 at 19:54 President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s announcement on Friday came after days of fighting between the government and Kurdish forces. On Saturday, those forces began withdrawing from a flashpoint east of Aleppo. © Abdulmonam Eassa/Getty ImagesPeople crossing a bridge as they fled from a Kurdish-controlled area on Friday in Rasm al-Harmal, east of Aleppo, Syria.