ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Washington’s decision to suspend foreign aid is worsening conditions in camps holding thousands of people with links to the Islamic State (ISIS) in northeast Syria (Rojava), Human Rights Watch said on Friday.
“The US government’s suspension of foreign aid to nongovernmental organizations operating in these camps is exacerbating life-threatening conditions, risking further destabilization of a precarious security situation,” the human rights monitor said.
“International humanitarian workers told Human Rights Watch that the US funding freeze would limit provision of essential services for camp residents,” it added.
USAID, established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, has provided humanitarian aid worth billions of dollars worldwide. As part of US President Donald Trump’s plan to reorganize the government, the agency’s work has been temporarily suspended. The agency’s staff, numbering over 10,000 worldwide, could be slashed to fewer than 300, Reuters reported on Friday.
At least one organization working in al-Hol and Roj camps in Rojava was receiving USAID funding.
“The northeast Syria response will struggle to sustain if the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance is not exempted [from the funding freeze] or provided a waiver by Washington, DC urgently,” a humanitarian worker was cited as saying by Human Rights Watch.
According to the watchdog, Blumont, the organization responsible for managing al-Hol and Roj camps, “received a stop-work order from the US Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration on the evening of January 24,” leading to the suspension of all their activities.
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio should continue US assistance to organizations providing essential lifesaving assistance in northeast Syria,” Human Rights Watch stated.
Blumont was given a two-week exemption from the funding freeze after Rubio issued a waiver for life-saving humanitarian work on January 28.
Al-Hol camp in northeast Syria’s Hasaka province is infamous for its squalid conditions and has been branded a breeding ground for terrorism. Iraqis and Syrians make up the majority of the 40,000 ISIS-linked people who have been held at the camp since the defeat of the group in 2019.
The camps are controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who have warned about a possible ISIS resurgence and the security risks posed by the camps.
Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria have repeatedly called on the international community to repatriate their nationals from the camp, but their calls have largely gone unanswered as many countries are unwilling to bring back their citizens due to security concerns.
Baghdad plans to repatriate all Iraqi nationals currently being held in camps. According to the latest statistics from the Iraqi migration and displaced ministry, more than 20,000 Iraqis, including women and children, remain in al-Hol, which is around half of the camp’s population.
