Farhad Shami, the head of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Media Center, said in a statement that "as part of our emergency security response related to the safety of our forces’ command, we deliberately restricted the release of information about the Turkish attack on Sulaymaniyah airport, where our Commander-in-Chief, Mazloum Abdi, was present."

Shami added that "this was done to ensure his safety until he arrived unharmed in the secure areas of north and eastern Syria. We will provide further details about the attack at a later time."

The same Commander-in-Chief, Mazloum Abdi, had previously said in a Tweet quoting PUK Bafil Talabani's statement: "We strongly condemn Turkey's targeting of Sulaymaniyah Airport, which continues in Iraq and Syria and has serious dimensions for the region."

Abdi stated that the PUK's support of its brothers in Rojava disturbs the invading Turkish state and added: "We will maintain our principled relations with our brothers and allies in Sulaymaniyah and we will be united against these attacks."