Two US senators introduce act to address camps of NE Syria

Hawl Camp east of Hasakah – North Press
Hawl Camp east of Hasakah – North Press

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press)— US Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Lindsey Graham introduced on Thursday the Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons Act to address the humanitarian and security concerns posed by the camps in north and east Syria, which houses thousands of displaced people and detainees affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS).

The largest one, Hawl Camp, is located 45 kilometers east of Hasakah city and houses around 56.000 people, including 28.725 Iraqis, 18.850 internally displaced Syrians, and 8.254 foreign nationals, according to the latest official statistics obtained by North Press. More than three-quarters of the camp detainees are women and children, and half are under the age of 12.

On September 17, the Internal Security Forces of North and East Syria (Asayish), supported by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the US-led Coalition, completed a 24-day security campaign in Hawl Camp, in which they arrested 226 ISIS operatives, including 26 women, seized many weapons and freed six women from slavery, according to the Asayish statement following the end of the operation.

At the beginning of July, the camp management announced that 28 murders had occurred since the beginning 2022, including 12 Syrians, 14 Iraqi refugees and two unidentified bodies, in addition to 15 unsuccessful attempted murders.

Senator Shaheen sounded alarm regarding the camps in north and east Syria. “The deteriorating sanitary conditions and lack of basic needs in the camps not only risk a humanitarian disaster but also exacerbate the existing security concerns in the camps,” said Shaheen in a statement on his official website.

After a visit to Hawl Camp this Summer, Shaheen described the situation on the ground as “unnerving and growing more dangerous.”

According to the Senator, the new act “will ensure that a senior official at the State Department is leading our government’s efforts to work toward closing the camps, addressing the humanitarian and security concerns in the camps and coalescing the international support needed to achieve an enduring defeat of ISIS,” in addition to establishing an interagency strategy on how to address the challenges related to repatriation and prosecution.