QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Most foreign families affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS) have left al-Hawl Camp in northeastern Syria following the withdrawal of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on Thursday, citing humanitarian sources and eyewitnesses.
According to AFP, a source from a humanitarian organization said that “the foreigners’ section is almost empty after the Kurdish forces withdrew from the camp in late January and it was taken over by Syrian security forces.”
Another humanitarian worker told the agency that “since last Saturday… there have only been 20 families left in the Muhajirat section,” referring to the area designated for foreign women and children, which had previously been under strict security measures and housed large numbers of individuals from Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
The same source added that “a large portion of them were smuggled to Idlib and other provinces, while a small number moved into sections designated for Syrians inside the camp.”
A humanitarian worker inside Syria told AFP, “It is clear that many people, including foreigners, have left the camp, but there are no official statistics yet.”
AFP further reported that, according to sources and witnesses, part of the Syrian residents—who number more than 15,000—and Iraqis, whose number exceeds 2,200, have also left the camp.
Meanwhile, a source from the camp administration affiliated with Syria’s Interior Ministry told AFP that authorities are still conducting a census of the camp’s residents, without confirming that any escape had taken place. The source said, “If there is any reason for all this, it lies with the SDF, which withdrew from the place before the handover process was completed.”
An eyewitness inside the camp told the agency that he “saw armed men taking veiled women out shortly after the Kurdish forces left and government forces took control.”
Al-Hawl Camp, located east of Hasakah, had been managed for years by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) with security provided by the SDF. The camp has housed tens of thousands of Syrians, Iraqis and third-country nationals linked to ISIS, and has been considered one of the most sensitive security files in northeast Syria.