AANES hands over 99 ISIS detainees to Kyrgyzstan
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) announced on Wednesday that it had handed over 99 ISIS detainees, including 72 children and 27 women from the families of the Islamic State (ISIS), to the Republic of Kyrgyzstan.
The Foreign Relations Department of the AANES said in a statement published on its official website that the handover took place during a meeting between a delegation from Kyrgyzstan and representatives of the Department on Feb. 19.
The delegation, headed by Bakyt Kadyrov, a representative of the Kyrgyzstan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was received by Rubel Bahho, Deputy Co-Chair of the Foreign Relations Department, Khalid Ibrahim, an official in the Department, and Lana Hussein, a representative of the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ).
During the meeting, Bahho said that the Turkish attacks on AANES-held areas systematically destroy people’s wellbeing, aiming to displace millions of the region’s residents and turn them into IDPs or refugees, which is a violation of the international humanitarian law.
All attacks occur before the eyes of the international community, he said.
He also noted that the Turkish attacks on AANES-held areas impede the fight against ISIS and undermine the process of repatriating ISIS families.
Bahho further stated that they have information indicating that ISIS exploits these attacks to reorganize its ranks and launch attacks in northern and eastern Syria.
For his part, Kadyrov stated the republic of Kyrgyzstan recognizes the sacrifices made by AANES and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against ISIS.
He thanked the AANES and SDF for their assistance and facilitation in repatriating their citizens in light of the difficult conditions experienced in northeastern Syria.