Thousands of Syrians, including families of jihadists from the Islamic State (IS) group, will be released from the overcrowded Al-Hol displacement camp in northeastern Syria, local Kurdish authorities announced on Monday (October 5th). .
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In recent months, several NGOs have sounded the alarm bells over the living conditions and lack of medical care in the Al-Hol camp, where 64,377 people live in the greatest poverty, according to UN data. .
Among them, about 24,300 Syrians, thousands of Iraqis, but also other foreigners and children.
Some are displaced people who fled the fighting by Kurdish forces against ISIS and have nowhere to go, others are close to jihadists.
On August 6, the first cases of the coronavirus were reported to Al-Hol.
Since then, two residents of the camp have contracted the virus, as well as twenty workers, mainly caregivers, according to a UN report dated at the end of September.
Read also: Syria: 21 orphans transferred from Al-Hol camp, including two French
"
The Syrians will leave the Al-Hol camp and only foreigners will stay there
," Riyad Derar, co-chairman of the Syrian Democratic Council, the political showcase of the military coalition dominated by the Kurds who control the Syrian Arab Republic, told AFP. northeastern Syria.
"
The Syrian families of IS fighters will also be released,
" he added without providing details on the mechanism or timing of the initiative, which is under discussion.
The combatants in prison are not concerned.
Riyad Derar clarified that Iraqis are allowed to leave if they wish, but many prefer to stay, fearing prison in Iraq for their alleged links with ISIS.
Several incidents involving IS supporters
The Al-Hol camp has seen several security incidents in recent months involving IS supporters, including escape attempts and attacks on guards or NGO workers.
In recent months, Kurdish authorities have released Syrian families after mediation with tribal leaders.
Since the summer of 2019, some 4,345 Syrians have left Al-Hol, according to the UN.
The conflict in Syria, which started in March 2011 with the crackdown on pro-democracy protests by Damascus, has turned into a complex war involving jihadist groups and foreign powers.
In March 2019, Kurdish forces backed by Washington announced the end of
ISIS's self-proclaimed 2014
“
caliphate
” in Syria.
The war in Syria has left over 380,000 dead and millions displaced and refugees.
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