Al-Hol Camp. Why Western Countries Fear the Return of the ISIS Families from Syria?

A growing security chaos witnessed in al-Hol camp east of the Syrian city of Hasaka, where the families and women of members and leaders of the “ISIS” of Arab and foreign nationalities are detained; this entises a need for international action to eradicate it from the Syrian geography.

Local fears are growing that al-Hol will become a fertile ground valid for the future revival of extremism in the Syrian landscape, in particular with most countries refusing the return of their nationals detained in the camp to their countries of origin. The children and wives of the ISIS operatives were gathered in Al-Hol camp during the fighting against the group in eastern Syria, before the United States announced the elimination of its last stronghold in the town of Baghuz in Deir ez-Zor province in March 2019.

The ISIS operatives who were surrendered or captured in combat were transferred to the prisons in Hasaka, U.S. forces isolated the group's princes from these operatives.

While women and children under the age of 10 were detained in al-Hol camp, children over the age of 12 were placed in al-Ahdath prison in the village of Tel Maarouf, northeast of Hasaka.

U.S. forces have also designated the so-called "Roj” camp, located near the city of Al-Malikia, north of Hasaka, as a very sensitive security prison; only women and children of the ISIS leaders and princes were detained.

The Syrian Democratic Forces “Qasad” with full U.S. logistical, military and intelligence support, administers al-Hol camp which is away 45 kilometers east of Hasaka.

The camp is containing about 62,000 people, about 30,000 of them are Iraqi refugees and 20,000 are Syrian displaced persons, the rest are the families of the ISIS operatives.

The number of Syrians displaced to al-Hol from the towns of Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa and Hasaka is decreasing during the fighting with the ISIS; as a result of successive impulses coming out of an agreement in October 2020, it was between local elders with Qassed's forces, and ordering to go out all the Syrians from the camp.

Provocative Operations

In addition to the miserable conditions of the al-Hol camp; from time to time, however, the families of the ISIS operatives carry out provocative operations, which reflects the extent of discontent with their reality, which symbolizes the need for a final solution to their outstanding file.

Since the beginning of 2021, 40 cases of killings of people have been documented inside al-Hol camp, the information indicates that they are due to accusations of employment and espionage for the camp administration, and another under the reasons of theft. There are also deliberate burnings of tents, particularly in the ISIS family section, the most recent was the burning of a full 50-tent pavilion on May 10, 2021.

The “Al-Sharqia 24” network (Syrian website) attributed the burning of tents; to the arrest of women and children of the ISIS members by Qassed's forces, who were trying to escape from the camp.

After the killing of former leader “Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi” on October 27, 2019, during a special operation by U.S. forces at a house where he lived in the town of Barisha, north of Idlib, the women of the organization were publicly pledged allegiance from the amid of al-Hol camp for the new Khalifa of al-Baghdadi, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, this gave further evidence that the organization's families held on to its ideas and beliefs.

In information provided by the local “Al-Sharqia 24” network for “Al-Estiklal” on the mechanism of dividing the al-Hol camp, where explained that it is divided into several sections and each section includes human groups, this is according to their nationalities, whether Iraqi, Uzbek, French, Russian, etc., a special section has been allocated for foreign women (migrants).

According to the network, there is also a section for the Syrian families displaced from Deir ez-Zor province, who are being taken out in impulses with guarantees from the tribal elders, another includes civilians and the ISIS families of Iraqi nationality who had taken refuge from the organization's battles in Iraq, especially from the border areas with Syria.

The ISIS attached great importance to the removal of the families of its members from al-Hol camp, calling them “captives”, this was what former organization leader al-Baghdadi had urged in his last visual appearance in late May 2019 before he was killed.

The camp is heavily guarded and women are prevented from entering the camp, except with the written permission of the camp administration, and with members of the Internal Security Forces of Qassed, for matters related to either interrogation or for treatment, especially as the health situation in the camp deteriorates.

 

“Smuggling” Families

“Al-Sharqiya 24” confirms that the ISIS cells deployed in the eastern region (Deir ez-Zor, Hasaka, Raqqa)are constantly paying large sums to remove and smuggle the families of its members from al-Hol camp.

Explaining that the cost of smuggling one individual of the organization's families from the camp amounts to $15,000, it is paid to "Qassed" operatives despite security checks on the camp.

According to the latest official statistics, al-Hol camp contains 9,000 from the ISIS families; they come from 60 foreign countries, including 3,177 women and the rest children.

But the state's handling of the al-Hol camp file is due to the state's interest in its nationality detained there, and their desire to deal with them and settle their situation, especially since the important element in this camp is the shortage of security stability or international oversight, to protect and qualify these families and children. Until late January 2021, Russia, Kazakhstan and other countries have recovered some 1,000 children and their family members from the al-Hol and Roj camps, according to the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office.

Press reports indicate that “the numbers are small and insufficient for the ISIS children who have been recaptured from Syria”, while others remain trapped and face the “danger of extremism”, the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office announced in late January 2021.

During 2020, Denmark recovered 2 orphaned children, and the Netherlands as well as 2 orphaned children, the same number was recovered by the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (2 children).

Norway has received 7 children, and America has received 5 women with 6 children, Belgium has received 6 children, Australia has received 8 children, and Russia has received 8 children.

France also received 17 orphaned children without parents, and the soviet Union's highest-restored states, Uzbekistan, remained 60 women and 88 children in May 2020, Kazakhstan received a total of 101 women with her child, and 35 children for Russia.

This is what “Al-Sharqia 24” has indicated that the direct reason why countries abandon their nationals, “the fact that most countries have been dropped from the families of members and leaders of the ISIS of nationalities, or classified as a terrorist list, their countries are also afraid to pose a threat to them in the future”.

 

Obstruction from “the Right”

But the file of the ISIS families in al-Hol camp of Arab and European nationalities remains stuck, more than two years after the elimination of the organization in Syria, it is justified according to many observers.

Orwa Ajoub, a researcher at the Center for Middle East Studies at The Swedish University of Lund, confirmed that, “The ways countries deal with their citizens have varied”.

In an interview with “Al-Estiklal”, Ajoub explained that “When some countries such as Russia, Uzbekistan and Kosovo, to name a few, returned some of their citizens, some major countries, such as the United States, Canada and Germany, seemed shy in their efforts to restore their nationals”.

He added: “The subject is very much about the internal situation of each country, in Britain the conservatives led by current Prime Minister Boris Johnson refuse talking about restoring people who migrated to Syria when they were children, and during their time they became adults”.

On February 20, 2019, the British Home Office handed over to the family of Shamima Begum, a British girl who joined ISIS, a notice stating that her citizenship had been revoked, she still lives in al-Hol camp.

According to the Researcher in the Islamic group’s affairs, Ajoub, “The disturbing rise of the right in Denmark, Germany and Sweden to a lesser extent, in addition to Islamophobia and ideas that transcend the white race, which increased during the rule of U.S. President Donald Trump; where the voices calling for the return of citizens were blocked, specifically, those of Arab origin are on the pretext of their extremism and the futility of treating them”.

He saw: “There is confusion in the decision-making circles, about how to deal with these people if they are recovered, asking questions about countering violent extremism, and ways to integrate these people into the society”. Ajoub said: “All these challenges block the ability of most countries to make decisive decisions regarding their own”.

Security Burden

Ajoub considered: “Tragic living conditions create a multi-species oppressive force for the camp's inhabitants; which the ISIS is using to seduce disgruntled people to their presence in the camp, they don't have to be convinced of its ideas”.

U.S. officials under Trump have long stated that supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces depends on fighting ISIS, and the administration of new President Joe Biden also renewed the requirement.

In February 2021, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said: “U.S. military operations in Syria and Iraq are currently focused on countering ISIS, which still exists”. And Kirby added: “We in Syria are working with the Syrian Democratic Forces, and that hasn't changed”.

In this context, "Al-Sharqia 24" noted that Qassed's forces “Are exploiting the issue of detainees in al-Hol camp for their benefit, whether at the international or domestic level, by continuously promoting the fight against terrorism, and receiving military support for it, especially from the countries of the international coalition”.

The camp has not made any attempts to rehabilitate its residents, or integrating or educating children and brainwashing them from the ideas of ISIS, where the mission of Qassed's forces was “protect the camp”.

And about the extent to which al-Hol camp was formed as a “time bomb” at the Syrian local level, the Syrian military and strategic expert Fayez Al-Asmar saw: “The ISIS families in the camp are a significant financial, living and security burden on the Syrian geography”.

During speaking to “Al-Estiklal”, the military expert attributed this to “The large numbers inside its, which is actually not a camp, It's a big prison”.

Al-Asmar confirmed: “The camp needs a large number of expertise to manage and guard it, and to maintain its stability and calm, as it contains multinational women and children and behaviors between its sides, but most of them are saturated with the ideology and thought of the ISIS, they are ready to rebel and commit crimes against each other and their jailers all the time”.