General Michael Kurilla, head of the American military command for the Middle East, called on Monday, September 12, the countries concerned to repatriate their nationals among the tens of thousands of people detained in the Al-Hol camp in Syria, which hosts relatives of jihadist fighters.
Located in northeastern Syria, this camp administered by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF, dominated by the Kurds), is home to tens of thousands of people captured or having fled the offensives against the last stronghold of the Islamic State (IS) group. ) in 2019. "
The camp is currently home to nearly 54,000 people, including 27,000 Iraqis, or half of its population, and around 18,000 Syrians as well as 8,500 foreigners (non-Iraqis or Syrians)
," the Centcom chief said.
Half of the camp's population is under the age of 18, according to the UN.
"Catastrophic"
Despite the warnings of international organizations denouncing a "
catastrophic
" situation in the overcrowded camp, most countries refuse to repatriate their nationals from the Al-Hol camp, which hosts Syrian and Iraqi families but also from Europe or from Asia.
“
Fifty percent of the camp's population are IS heirs who adhere to the group's vile ideology.
The others are people who have nowhere else to go and want to go home
,” Gen. Kurilla told a press conference at the US Embassy in Amman.
"
I encourage all countries that have nationals held in the camp to repatriate them and reintegrate them (into society)
," he pleaded, saying that he had visited this camp located less than 10 kilometers from the Iraqi border.
"
We must approach this file with empathy because there is no military solution to this issue
," he added.
General Michael Kurilla also indicated that “
the repatriation of Iraqi prisoners and fighters from IS is currently underway.
We are working with the Iraqi authorities to speed up the process
”.
The semi-autonomous Kurdish administration in northeast Syria recently transferred nearly 700 Iraqis linked to IS to their country, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH).
It launched a security operation last month to flush out jihadists hiding in the camp, after an upsurge in attacks.
Dozens of fighters have been arrested and major IS networks dismantled, a statement from the US-led anti-jihadist coalition said on Wednesday.