US hails Canada’s repatriation of 14 nationals from NE Syria
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The United States (US) welcomed on Thursday Canada’s repatriation of 14 women and children from camps for family members of Islamic State (ISIS) in northeast Syria.
The US department of State said, in a press statement, that there are 10,000 ISIS militants held in detention facilities across the region, saying that it is “largest concentration of detained terrorist fighters in the world.”
A day earlier, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) handed over four women and ten children of ISIS families to a Canadian delegation.
In addition, the US thanked Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) “for their leadership in addressing this complicated situation.”
Tens of thousands of women and children of ISIS families from about 60 countries are still in the two camps of Hawl and Roj within the AANES-held areas in northeast Syria.
The US stressed that about 10,000 individuals from more than 60 countries outside Syria and Iraq remain in Hawl and Roj camps.
“Repatriation is the only durable solution for this population, most of whom are vulnerable children under the age of 12,” according to the release.
The US “stands ready to assist other nations in their repatriation efforts,” according to the release.