The video shows Russian and Syrian troops as well as members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the village of Arima in the northern part of Aleppo province. The village is located west of Manbij, the key SDF stronghold in this part of Syria.
The SDF members spotted on the video likely belong to the so-called Al-Bab Military Council of the SDF. This small Arab faction was created when the Kurdish-dominated group still had hopes to capture the town of al-Bab in northern Aleppo and to expand its control along the Syrian border further.
Syrian and Russian troops entered the village of Arima earlier this week and restored a local coordination center with the SDF. Pro-government sources speculate that this is a part of the wider deal between the Syrian-Iranian-Russian alliance and the SDF leadership. However, negotiations are still ongoing.
muh turkey ottoman empire stronk we will march all the way to latakia and aleppo and damascus! stronk!
It’s not just the Kurds negotiating with Assad and Putin, it’s the local Arab/Christian and other minority populations doing a lot of their own negotiating too, with not only Assad and Putin, but the Kurds as well. They’re all in the same boat now, it’s not just the Kurds that would lose out with Erdogan in power here, only the Turkman populations in the north will benefit from a Turkish invasion, no one else. So don’t just think of this as a Turkish/Kurdish war, it will be a lot more inclusive than that.