QAMISHLO (Kurdistan 24) – Heavy clashes erupted on Tuesday night between US-backed Kurdish fighters and armed groups loyal to Bashar al-Assad in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishlo that left casualties and injuries on both sides, local sources said.

Around 10 pm local time fighters from the regime-backed militia known as National Defense Forces (NDF), shot dead a commander of the Kurdish Asayish security forces, part of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), at an SDF checkpoint in the center of Qamishlo city, local sources told Kurdistan 24.

The Kurdish forces repelled the attack and clashes continued in the city’s al-Tay neighborhood overnight, leaving several dead and wounded from the regime-backed side, the sources added.

The Asayish confirmed they lost one of their fighters in the attack.

“Mercenaries of the National Defense Militia shot at the checkpoint of our forces at al-Wahda roundabout in Qamishlo on the evening of Tuesday, April 20, which led to the death of a member of our forces succumbing to his wounds,” the force said in a statement.

Asayish sources said on Wednesday they controlled parts of the Tay neighborhood and had taken control of two NDF checkpoints.

Qamishlo – also spelled Qamishli – is under the split control of US-backed Kurdish forces and regime troops and the Iran-affiliated militia. Syrian military forces control an area of about one-third of the city space, including Tay – under NDF control – another nearby neighborhood, and the airport on the city’s southern outskirts.

The NDF and Kurdish forces have clashed several times since 2016, but the Syrian regime has largely tried to avoid tensions with the SDF and turned a blind eye to their control of Kurdish-populated cities since the 2011 uprising, instead focusing mainly on fighting rebel factions seeking to topple Assad’s rule. The regime also has not halted salaries for state employees in SDF areas.

Anti-regime opposition groups backed by neighboring Turkey claim this uneasy relationship proves the Kurds are allies with Assad, but local Kurdish authorities have explained they prioritized the fight against the Islamic State group, keeping their relationship with the regime a political competition.

“Fighting will not continue as both Kurds and the regime usually meet and negotiate after every clash,” residents in Qamishlo told Kurdistan 24 on Wednesday.

Kurdish fighters said the latest violence was triggered by the NDF checkpoint attack, as well as arrests and attacks on civilians in the last week.

The most violent clashes between the SDF and pro-Assad fighters took place in 2016 in Qamishlo and nearby Hasakah, leading the Kurds to capture most of both, leaving about one-third of Qamishlo and 10 percent of Hasakah under regime control.