ALEPPO, Syria (AP) — Displaced Syrians returned to the city of Aleppo after clashes between government forces and the U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces earlier this month forced them to move to neighboring towns.
On Saturday, Syrian government troops moved into two northern towns after Kurdish-led forces pulled back in an effort to avoid further clashes.
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FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Syrian government soldiers carry machine guns as they ride motorcycles on a road leading to the town of Deir Hafer, Syria, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians cross a river in a boat near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A U.S. military vehicle from the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group drives through Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, before a meeting with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - An aerial view shows buses carrying displaced residents as they return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A man carries a woman as he walks on a bridge over a river near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A displaced Syrian man rides a motorcycle carrying a birdcage near a humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents look out from a bus window as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A fighter with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stands guard during a meeting with the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A man crosses a street in the predominantly Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents look out from a bus window as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A displaced Syrian family ride on a motorcycle near the humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians gather near a river crossing close to the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. Aerial pattern from unknown source. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A Syrian military police convoy enters the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A member of the Syrian military police stands near a sign with Arabic text that reads "The road is dangerous. SDF is 1 kilometer away", at a humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced residents return to a the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Rohlat Efrin, center, a commander in the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, speaks with an SDF member as American soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group stand guard during a meeting in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - An aerial view shows destroyed vehicles in a building in the area of the predominantly Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood where clashes broke out Tuesday Jan. 6 between government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced residents return to a the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
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This is a photo gallery created by AP photo editors.
FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Syrian government soldiers carry machine guns as they ride motorcycles on a road leading to the town of Deir Hafer, Syria, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians cross a river in a boat near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A U.S. military vehicle from the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group drives through Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, before a meeting with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - An aerial view shows buses carrying displaced residents as they return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A man carries a woman as he walks on a bridge over a river near the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A displaced Syrian man rides a motorcycle carrying a birdcage near a humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents look out from a bus window as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - A fighter with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stands guard during a meeting with the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A man crosses a street in the predominantly Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents look out from a bus window as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A displaced Syrian family ride on a motorcycle near the humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced Syrians gather near a river crossing close to the village of Rasm al-Harmil al-Imam in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. Aerial pattern from unknown source. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Displaced residents return to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A Syrian military police convoy enters the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - A member of the Syrian military police stands near a sign with Arabic text that reads "The road is dangerous. SDF is 1 kilometer away", at a humanitarian crossing declared by the Syrian army in the village of Hamima, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced residents return to a the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced Syrians walk to cross at a river crossing near the village of Jarirat al Imam, in the eastern Aleppo countryside, near the front line with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Deir Hafer, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
FILE - Rohlat Efrin, center, a commander in the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, speaks with an SDF member as American soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group stand guard during a meeting in Deir Hafer, Syria, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
FILE - An aerial view shows destroyed vehicles in a building in the area of the predominantly Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood where clashes broke out Tuesday Jan. 6 between government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)
FILE - Displaced residents return to a the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
