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Manbij suffers seventh car bombing since SDF expelled

A car bombing in the eastern Aleppo city of Manbij killed at least 15 people on Monday. It was the seventh similar attack to hit the city since the Turkish-backed SNA seized it from the SDF in December, sparking accusations.


3 February 2025

PARIS — At least 15 people were killed and 18 injured—most of them women farmworkers—when a car bomb exploded Monday morning in Manbij, a city in eastern Aleppo province controlled by Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) factions.

The explosion took place just as a truck carrying workers to land on the outskirts of Manbij was passing by. As of Monday evening, the Syrian Civil Defense reported the dead included 11 women, three children and one man. The wounded included 13 women and five children, some of whom were critically injured. 

“The car bomb, a Suzuki, was parked on the side of the street near the al-Matahin roundabout south of Manbij. It blew up as the truck carrying the workers passed by,” Saddam al-Hassan, a media activist from the city, told Syria Direct

Monday’s bombing marked the seventh car bombing in Manbij since SNA factions seized control of the city from the United States (US)-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on December 8, 2024. The SNA advanced into Manbij as part of Operation Dawn of Freedom, an offensive against the SDF in northeastern Aleppo that coincided with a separate opposition offensive that ultimately toppled the Assad regime. 

“The car bombs that have targeted Manbij since the SDF was expelled have killed at least 30 people,” al-Hassan said. He accused the SDF of being behind the attacks.

Responding to Monday’s bombing, the Syrian presidency put out a statement vowing to “hold those involved accountable.” The perpetrators would face the “harshest penalties,” it added, without explicitly accusing any party. 

The bombing aimed “to kill as many civilians as possible, since it detonated the moment the truck passed by,” Emad al-Jassim, a Manbij native living in northern Aleppo, said. “The road it was parked on is usually used by such trucks that carry large numbers of civilians.” 

Al-Jassim also accused the SDF, alleging its leaders “threatened residents, saying they would turn the city into a bloodbath if they didn’t stand with them against the entering factions.” He accused the SDF of “sending bombs into every area it loses.”

Yousef Abu Hassan, a military commander in the SNA’s Joint Force, said “the car [bomb] attempted to enter the city yesterday, but due to the many checkpoints and security positions deployed at the entrances and main areas, it was forced to park at the site where it exploded.” 

A suspect is in custody, Abu Hassan said, who is “accused of being behind the bombing, and investigations are underway to determine the extent of his connection” to the attack. “The intelligence we have indicates the SDF is behind it,” he added. 

The SNA commander based his accusation on the SDF “using car bombs as a war strategy,” referring to a previous incident when a car exploded on al-Rabta street in Manbij on January 17. Investigations and video footage later revealed the man who parked the car and left it lives in SDF-controlled Raqqa city, he said. 

After the January 17 attack, activists circulated surveillance footage showing an individual parking a car on a street in Manbij and leaving the location. “This prompted us to intensify the military points at the entrances of the city to prevent car bombs from entering,” Abu Hassan said. 

The SDF has condemned what it described as “the terrorist bombing in Manbij,” noting that “the culture of car bombs, infighting, terrorism, chaos and sedition is an inherent part of the actions of the mercenary factions affiliated with Turkey.” This “strategy is used by these groups to terrorize the people and prevent protests against the bad conditions in Manbij,” it added. 

Syria Direct reached out to Farhad al-Shami, the head of the SDF’s media center, for an official statement but received no response by the time of publication. 

‘SDF cells’

“The city is full of SDF cells, and no SDF member or commander who remained in the city after the SNA entered has been arrested,” activist al-Hassan said. “Where is the Damascus government, what is the reason for its silence about what is going on in Manbij?”

Al-Jassim agreed, saying “many SDF commanders and elements are still in the city, roaming freely in the open.” “We know them personally, and some of them worked with SDF intelligence, but they are in their homes without accountability. Nobody goes near them.” 

He alleged many of these individuals are “sheltered by some corrupt military commanders in the factions,” paying bribes for protection. “If they are not held accountable and put in prison to receive their punishment, there will be no stability in Manbij,” he said.

SNA commander Abu Hassan acknowledged no SDF members who remained in Manbij have been arrested. “Arrests cannot be made arbitrarily, and we have no judiciary or prisons [in Manbij] at the moment,” he explained.

A settlement process would soon be set in place for SDF forces, he added, as the Damascus government’s General Security Directorate “entered Manbij two days ago.” Those “involved in bloodshed will be referred to the judiciary,” he added. 

Notably, the Ministry of Interior of the caretaker government in Damascus seized a car bomb on January 23 that was en route to Aleppo city. It was the second such vehicle intercepted in two weeks, the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported at the time, noting the car was coming from areas controlled by the SDF.

This report was originally published in Arabic and translated into English by Mateo Nelson. 

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