ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi government plans to return nearly 700 nationals from the al-Hol camp in northeast Syria (Rojava) which houses the families of Islamic State (ISIS) fighters, a spokesperson for Iraq’s migration ministry said on Tuesday. Ali Abbas told Rudaw that these Iraqi nationals will be brought back to their country in the coming two days. Iraq has repatriated around 10,000 nationals from the camp; however, 18,000 remain, according to the spokesperson. Iraqis and Syrians make up the majority of the 40,000 ISIS-linked people who have been held at the camp in Hasaka province since the military defeat of ISIS in 2019. The camp has been described as a humanitarian disaster and a breeding ground for terrorism by security experts. In July, Iraq repatriated 150 families from the camp. Most of the repatriates live in al-Jada rehabilitation camp in Iraq’s northern Nineveh province. Al-Jada prepares the individuals for reintegration into their communities and then return to their places of origin. Kurdish authorities in Rojava and the United States repeatedly have called on the international community to repatriate their nationals from the camps, but most countries have been unwilling to bring back their citizens due to security concerns.
