The Syrian Arab Army took control of the Asayish Internal Security Forces headquarters in Sheikh Maqsud neighborhood and completed combing operations in more than two-thirds of the area between 11:16 PM UTC on January 9 and 12:16 AM UTC on January 10, according to X posts by Zaino Yasser Mahameed and Nasser Al-Din. Nasser Al-Din stated that army forces dismantled dozens of mines in Sheikh Maqsud streets, arrested a number of SDF members, and confiscated heavy and medium weapons, large quantities of ammunition, light weapons, and explosive devices, while arranging for Internal Security Forces entry upon completion of sweeping operations. The operations faced great difficulties due to SDF forces using civilians as human shields and stationing them in residents' homes, Nasser Al-Din reported on X. These advances build on Syrian Arab Army combing efforts announced earlier on January 9 following SDF attacks that killed three soldiers. Earlier statements from the Syrian Ministry of Defence detailed ongoing combing operations in Sheikh Maqsud, including seizure of SDF fortified positions, per previous reports from EuphratesPost and QalaatAlMudiq on X.
