US urges repatriation from camps of NE_Syria
HASAKAH, Syria (North Press) – The US Embassy in Syria called on all countries with nationals in the camps of northeast Syria on Monday to work on their repatriation.
The embassy said in a tweet, “A U.S. interagency delegation visited Hawl camp this weekend.”
The delegation included Ian Moss, the Deputy Coordinator for Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorist Detentions in the Bureau of Counterterrorism; Scott Turner, a Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Population, Migration and Refugees; Ilan Goldenberg, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs; Jake Alter, Country Director for Syria at Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy; Ian McCary, Deputy Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.
The embassy said that the visit came “to discuss repatriations,” hinting to the thousands of foreign families in Hawl and Newroz camps in northeast Syria.
The delegation also discussed means of providing “assistance, and security needs in NE Syria with local authorities and partners,” referring to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
“We encourage all countries with nationals in NE Syria to work with us towards durable solutions,” the US embassy added.
On Saturday, another US delegation headed by Ethan Goldrich, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, visited the city of Qamishli, northeastern Syria, to meet with officials from the AANES’ Department of Foreign Relations.
In the meeting, Goldrich said they were preparing long-term plans to fight terrorism and allocate a budget to support stability in northeastern Syria.