AANES opens rehabilitation center in Raqqa for Hawl returnees

Social Welfare Centre in Raqqa Governorate, north Syria, for people left Hawl Camp - North Press
Social Welfare Centre in Raqqa Governorate, north Syria, for people left Hawl Camp - North Press

By Fatima Khaled

RAQQA, Syria (North Press) – An official from Raqqa Civil Council, affiliated with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), announced on Monday that the construction of a rehabilitation center for individuals released from Hawl Camp in the countryside of Hasakah, northeast Syria, is nearing completion in almost a week.

This center, the one and only in northeastern Syria, is specifically designed to cater to returnees from Hawl Camp, including the old, widows, and those affected by war.

Jihad Hassan, the co-chair of the Social Affairs and Labor Committee in the Raqqa Civil Council, stated that the center is currently in the final stages of construction and will be handed over to the committee in nearly a week.

Hassan further informed North Press that the Social Affairs and Labor Committee of Raqqa, in collaboration with supporting stakeholders, will soon announce a grant for the center and begin the process of involving returnees from Hawl camp.

“A number of teams from the Labor Committee are presently assessing the needs of the returnees from Hawl Camp in Raqqa, including their security and stabilization requirements, as well as determining the necessary services and care to be provided, including food aid,” Hassan said.

He also highlighted that after the assessment, the committee will proceed with conducting a census of returning children who require education and healthcare, as well as counting the number of women and individuals with disabilities or facing health and social challenges.

In a previous statement to North Press, Hassan mentioned that the center will have multiple branches, housing specialized offices for the care of widows, people with special needs, and those affected by war. These offices will provide psychological support, training, and rehabilitation services.

Hassan further stated that the Social Affairs and Labor Committee has collaborated with the Education Committee of Raqqa and other relevant committees to ensure the education and reintegration of returning children into schools within the center.

Hassan ended that efforts are also underway to replicate this center’s model in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, eastern Syria, and the city of Tabqa, northern Syria,  aiming to involve returnees from Hawl Camp into those areas through the Social Affairs and Labor Committees.