Kurdish Media Figures and Institutions Criticise Al Jazeera’s Coverage of Events in Syria

RT Arabic

residents leaving their areas due to fighting in Syria.

A group of media organisations, journalists, and public figures in the Kurdistan Region have criticised Al Jazeera’s coverage of recent events in Aleppo and the attacks on Kurdish neighbourhoods in Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud, urging the broadcaster to adhere to impartiality and refrain from inflaming ethnic and religious tensions.

In a statement received by PUKMEDIA, 92 media professionals and institutions from across the Kurdistan Region expressed concern over what they described as Al Jazeera’s approach to reporting on developments in Syria. The statement warned that the channel’s coverage has contributed to the incitement of ethnic and religious sensitivities.

“We express our deep concern regarding Al Jazeera’s handling of events in Syria, particularly its role in stirring religious and ethnic tensions,” the statement said. It added that the channel had “exceeded the limits of professionalism and journalistic neutrality”, and was, “directly or indirectly, contributing to hostile rhetoric amounting to sectarian incitement”.

The signatories noted that this editorial approach had previously been evident in Al Jazeera’s reporting on issues affecting Alawite and Druze communities, and said it is now being repeated “in an alarming manner” in coverage related to Syrian Kurdistan.

The statement emphasised that the Kurdish people in Syria have endured decades of struggle, sacrifice, and repression in their pursuit of freedom, dignity, and a political system founded on justice, equal citizenship, and respect for pluralism. It warned that selective reporting detached from historical and political realities, coupled with inflammatory language, risks distorting facts and undermining social cohesion, stability, and civil peace.

Tensions between Syrian government forces and the internal security forces (Asayish) in Aleppo have been  ongoing since Tuesday, causing civilian deaths and injuries.

The Syrian state news agency SANA reported that the army had launched heavy and concentrated shelling on the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighbourhoods.

Earlier, the Syrian army had released maps identifying areas in Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh that residents were ordered to evacuate in preparation for military operations. Syrian authorities issued an ultimatum to civilians in the two predominantly Kurdish neighbourhoods, instructing them to leave their homes ahead of the resumption of shelling.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has released figures detailing casualties since the first day of the escalation, reporting a total of 18 fatalities.

According to the Observatory, 12 civilians were killed, including four women and three children. Nine of the civilian deaths — comprising five men, two women, and two children — occurred in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighbourhoods, while three civilians, including two women and one child, were killed in the Midan neighbourhood.

In addition, six members of military forces from both sides were killed, including one fighter from the Internal Security Forces and five personnel affiliated with the Syrian Ministry of Defence.

The Observatory reiterated its warning about “the serious repercussions of the continued escalation on the lives of civilians and the infrastructure in the city of Aleppo.”

The renewed violence comes amid growing international calls for an immediate halt to the fighting and for all parties to engage in dialogue to resolve the dispute and prevent further escalation.

U.S. is "closely monitoring" the tensions in Aleppo, a State Department spokesperson said.

"The United States is closely monitoring the situation.  We urge restraint on all sides," the spokesperson told Rudaw.  

"All parties should focus on how to build a peaceful, stable Syria that protects and serves the interests of all Syrians, rather than pushing the country back into a cycle of violence," they added. 

"Attacks by the Syrian regime's forces against the Kurdish minority in the city of Aleppo -- are grave and dangerous," Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on X.

"The international community in general, and the West in particular, owes a debt of honor to the Kurds who fought bravely and successfully against ISIS," he added.

Moreover, he said that systematic and murderous repression of Syria’s various minorities contradicts the promises of a “new Syria.” 

"Silence on the part of the international community will lead to an escalation of the violence by the Syrian regime," he noted.

The United Nations has called for an immediate de-escalation of the situation and the resumption of negotiations, as demonstrations condemning the escalation took place in the nearby city of Qamishli.

Meanwhile, Türkiye announced its readiness to support the Syrian army should Damascus request assistance. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar described the attacks on Kurdish neighbourhoods in Aleppo as “serious and grave.”



PUKMEDIA