Fighting broke out in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Monday between Kurdish fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and security troops loyal to President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Syrian state media and Kurdish sources gave conflicting accounts of how the battle broke out and how many civilians were killed and wounded in the crossfire.

The SDF issued a statement on Monday accusing “factions affiliated with the interim defense ministry” of launching an unprovoked attack on a security checkpoint jointly manned by central government troops and the Asayish, the internal security force of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of Syria.

The SDF said the attack was “a clear continuation of uncontrolled escalation that threatens the city’s security and civilian lives” and provided further evidence of “the Damascus government’s inability to control its factions.”

According to the SDF account, the scuffle at the checkpoint quickly escalated and spread to surrounding Kurdish-majority neighborhoods in Aleppo, where “Damascus-affiliated factions used mortar shells and heavy weapons,” causing “the injury of five civilians, including a young girl.”

The Syrian Interior Ministry rejected the SDF statement, instead accusing SDF forces stationed in Aleppo of “treacherously attacking the internal security forces at the joint checkpoints.”

“The attack left one member of the internal security forces and one army soldier injured, along with multiple injuries among civil defense personnel and civilians,” the Interior Ministry said.

The Syrian Defense Ministry further accused the SDF of deliberately targeting civilians and attacking the Syrian Arab Army, remnants of deposed dictator Bashar Assad’s army that have since switched their allegiance to the new “interim government” headed by Sharaa.

Adding to the confusion, the Syrian Civil Defense Agency said the SDF opened fire on one of their vehicles, injuring two of their emergency responders.

The SDF is a Kurdish-led militia that served as a major U.S. ally during the Syrian Civil War and the battle against the Islamic State. The SDF has been reluctant to fully integrate with Sharaa’s government in Damascus, in part because the Kurds do not fully trust the jihadi groups that form the backbone of Sharaa’s ruling alliance.

SDF leader Mazloum Abdi has met with Sharaa several times in Damascus to work on a road map for fully integrating SDF forces with the national military – and to arrange ceasefires after previous occasions when the SDF clashed with forces loyal to Sharaa. The integration roadmap is commonly known as the “March 10 Agreement,” after the date of a crucial summit between Abdi and Sharaa.

The Trump administration has kept Abdi in the loop on President Donald Trump’s meetings with Sharaa, which in November led Syria to formally join the U.S.-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. Abdi applauded Syria joining the coalition, and thanked President Trump for “his leadership on Syria, and for giving the Syrian people a chance for greatness.”

One reason this seemingly optimistic process keeps dissolving into armed clashes is the influence of Turkey, which has been supportive of Sharaa’s government but is rather less enthusiastic about the Kurds. Turkey regards all armed Kurdish groups in Syria as allies of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a violent separatist organization which Ankara considers one of the greatest threats to its security.

Turkey is so anxious about the SDF-PKK relationship that it opposed the notion of the SDF joining forces with Damascus as a single unit, instead insisting the SDF should be formally dissolved, and its fighters individually inducted into the national army.

The Sharaa government made a counteroffer to break SDF forces into three divisions that would remain distinct under the leadership of the Syrian national army, but the discussion between Ankara, Damascus, and the SDF appears to have stalemated.

The March 10 Agreement stipulated that SDF integration into the Syrian national military would be completed by the end of 2025, a date which Sharaa’s officials – and Turkey – regard as a very firm deadline.

After meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Damascus on Monday, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani accused the SDF of “systematic procrastination” in finalizing the deal Abdi made with Sharaa in March.

“We have not seen an initiative or a serious will from the Syrian Democratic Forces to implement this agreement,” al-Shibani said, implying the Kurdish response to an integration proposal offered by Damascus on Sunday was less than satisfactory.

For his part, Fidan accused the SDF of “running some of its operations in coordination with Israel,” to advance Israel’s “expansionist policies.” He offered no details or evidence of the alleged collusion. The fighting in Aleppo broke out several hours after Fidan made these comments.

On Tuesday, the SDF published videos that purportedly showed Syrian government forces withdrawing from the joint checkpoint in Aleppo shortly before the skirmish began. The SDF offered the video as proof that the attack on its fighters was “planned,” “premeditated,” and “deliberately instigated by government-affiliated factions.”

The SDF also pointed to footage from Saudi and Qatari media that documented forces loyal to Damascus firing artillery shells into densely populated Kurdish civilian neighborhoods.

“This shelling warrants clear and unequivocal condemnation, as it reveals these forces’ direct responsibility for endangering civilian lives and committing a grave violation of international humanitarian law,” the SDF said.

Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told the Kurdish news service Rudaw on Monday that reports of “increased clashes between the government of Syria’s security forces and the SDF” were “very disturbing.”

“It is important that the guns be silenced and that discussions continue for the benefit of all Syrians, regardless of their religion or ethnicity,” Dujarric said.