SHOTLIST:

RAQQA, SYRIA (JAN. 17, 2026) (ANADOLU — ACCESS ALL)

1. SYRIAN ARMY SOLDIERS AND JEEP MOUNTED WITH GUN

2. TANK DRIVING ON ROAD

3. MILITARY VEHICLES ON ROAD

4. VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS, CIVILIANS AND MILITARY VEHICLES NEAR RAQQA RAQQA, SYRIA — JAN. 17, 2026: The Syrian Army reached the outskirts of the city of Raqqa on Saturday, Jan. 17, amid ongoing conflicts with the YPG/SDF terror group.

The number of Syrian soldiers killed rose to four on Saturday after they were targeted by the YPG/SDF terror group in the provinces of Aleppo and Raqqa in northern and northeastern Syria.

“Forces of the SDF organization violated the agreement and carried out an attack targeting a patrol of the Syrian Arab Army near the city of Maskanah (of Aleppo), leading to the martyrdom of two soldiers and the injury of others,” the Operations Command of the Syrian Army told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

Separately, the Media and Communication Directorate at the Defense Ministry told SANA that “terrorist PKK militias targeted Syrian Arab Army forces in the town of Dibsi Afnan west of Raqqa using suicide drones, resulting in the martyrdom of two soldiers.”

This attack came after the Syrian Army announced that it had taken full control of the cities of Deir Hafir and Maskanah east of Aleppo, following the withdrawal of the YPG/SDF terror group toward the east of the Euphrates River.

The Operations Command told SANA that PKK terror group members "are deployed in a number of villages and towns west of the Euphrates, obstructing the implementation of the agreement and targeting Syrian Army forces.”

The command also said the army will continue establishing control over areas west of the Euphrates and will respond to any targeting of its forces.

Earlier, the Defense Ministry's Media and Communication Directorate told SANA that the “SDF opened fire on correspondents of the Syrian Arab News Agency and military media personnel near the town of Dibsi Afnan in the Raqqa countryside.”

In March 2025, the Syrian presidency announced an agreement for the terrorist organization YPG/SDF's integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country’s territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.