DAMASCUS: Syria confirmed on Wednesday the mass escape of relatives of suspected Daesh militants from the Al-Hol camp last month following the withdrawal of Kurdish forces who had overseen the facility.
“When our forces arrived, they found cases of collective escapes due to the camp having been opened up in a haphazard manner,” interior ministry spokesman Noureddine Al-Baba told a press conference.
Al-Hol, the largest camp for relatives of suspected Daesh militants in northeastern Syria, had been under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
But last month, Syrian troops drove Kurdish forces from swathes of the north.
The SDF withdrew from the camp on January 20, with Syrian security forces taking control a few hours later.
“The SDF withdrew suddenly, without coordination and without informing” the Syrian authorities or the international anti-Daesh coalition beforehand, Al-Baba said.
There was a “chaotic situation” after the Kurdish forces pulled out, he added, and “more than 138 breaches” have been discovered in the camp’s 17-kilometer (11-mile) perimeter wall that allowed mass escapes.
After the Kurdish forces withdrew, thousands of women and children fled the camp to parts unknown.
Al-Hol housed 23,500 people, mostly Syrian and Iraqis, the ministry spokesman said.
Around 6,500 foreigners of 44 different nationalities lived in a high-security section of the camp.
Last week, Syrian authorities moved the families still at Al-Hol to another site in the country’s north.
Before the Kurdish forces withdrew, the United States military had transferred more than 5,700 detained Daesh suspects from Syrian prisons to Iraq.
The US had previously announced it would transfer around 7,000 detainees.
Daesh swept across Syria and Iraq in 2014, committing massacres and forcing women and girls into sexual slavery.
Backed by US-led forces, Iraq proclaimed the defeat of Daesh in the country in 2017, and the SDF ultimately beat back the group in Syria two years later.
The SDF went on to jail thousands of suspected extremists and detain tens of thousands of their relatives in camps.
Syria confirms ‘mass escape’ from Al-Hol camp for relatives of militants
https://arab.news/r9js8
Syria confirms ‘mass escape’ from Al-Hol camp for relatives of militants
- More than 138 breaches have been discovered in the camp’s 17-kilometer perimeter wall that allowed mass escapes
- Around 6,500 foreigners of 44 different nationalities lived in a high-security section of the camp
UN chief Guterres condemns Middle East escalation
NEW YORK: The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned an escalation of violence in the Middle East on Saturday after Israel and the US launched strikes on Iran, plunging the region into a renewed military confrontation.
Tehran responded by launching missiles at Israel and called the strikes against it unprovoked and illegal.
“I condemn today’s military escalation in the Middle East. The use of force by the United States and Israel against Iran, and the subsequent retaliation by Iran across the region, undermine international peace and security,” he said.
“I call for an immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation. Failing to do so risks a wider regional conflict with grave consequences for civilians and regional stability. I strongly encourage all parties to return immediately to the negotiating table.
“I reiterate that there is no viable alternative to the peaceful settlement of international disputes, in full accordance with international law, including the UN Charter,” he added.
