The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) blew up the Um Tina bridge east of Deir Hafer in eastern Aleppo countryside this morning, with reports of two additional bridges detonated today in the same region, according to QalaatAlMudiq over the past 59 minutes ending at 1:15 PM UTC on January 13, 2026. SDF reinforcements recently sent to the eastern Aleppo front include ex-regime fighters, while Damascus pushed reinforcements over the past 24 hours including armor, heavy artillery and a fleet of Shaheen drones, QalaatAlMudiq reported during the reporting window from 12:16 PM UTC. These actions occur amid sharply rising tensions since clashes erupted in Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood. The Syrian military command declared Deir Hafer and Maskana under SDF control closed military zones, calling on civilians to stay away from SDF positions and requesting SDF fighters withdraw east of the Euphrates to prevent attacks, as quoted by QalaatAlMudiq citing an earlier statement. Verify Syria confirmed that video clips circulating on Syrian government channels purporting to show recent SDF military build-ups to Deir Hafer are old footage published on pro-SDF pages since mid-2025 and unrelated to current reinforcements.
