Iraqi refugees in Al-Hol camp refuse to go back to their country in fear of Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi miltants

Many people are now writing down their names to go back to Iraq, but large numbers refuse the idea of going back and prefer life in the camp to prisons.

Thousands of Iraqi refugees living in Al-Hol camp east of Al-Hassaka governorate refuse to go back home in fear of the Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi forces calling them “revanchist”, amid calls to the central government to provide a safe environment for their return.

More than 40,000 Iraqi refugees are currently living in Al-Hol camp who came to Syria at differnet times after the Islamic State invasion of their areas in 2014, with IS defeat, many refugees went back to their homes, while some of them stayed in the camp. 

Many refugees are reluctant to go back to their country, fearing from arrest by Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi forces, a procedure is done against those who have close ties with those involved in the “Islamic State”, where their fate is often unknown. 

“We want to go back to Iraq as soon as possible, but the militias of Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi are “revanchist”, even if you didn’t do anything, you don’t know about your fate” says the Iraqi refugee (M.N) from Salah Al-Din, who has been living in Al-Hol camp for a year and a half. 

“Many people are now writing down their names to go back to Iraq, but large numbers refuse the idea of going back and prefer life in the camp to prisons.” He added. 

Noting that he heard news from Iraq that a decision issued by Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi for the arrest of members whose age starts from 12 years on. 

Most Iraqi refugees refuse to speak in front of the camera in fear of their relatives in Iraq or to be arrested when they go back home one day, such as the refugee (Q.Y) from Al-Anbar province. “We all want to go home, but we fear detention and unknowon fate,” he said, noting that “all the allegations that promote their joining to IS, are incorrect.” 

(Q.Y) called on the Iraqi authorities to take them back to their homes and provide a safe environment for them. 

Iraqi refugee section in Al-Hol camp includes a council under the name of “Council of Al-Hol Camp for Iraqi Refugees”, which regularly conducts foreign refugee affairs and their returning to their home in coordination with the directorate of the camp which is run by Self-Administration in north and east of Syria. 

“We used to organize trips to Iraq every Thursday, but after the fighting began in Al-Baghuoz, we stopped it until it was over,” said Adnan Al-Abdullah, chair of the council in his talking about their doings to move the refugees back. 

He added: “We currently started registrating the names from the number 7.000 to 40.000, and the trips of returning will begin after the Feast” explaining that the number of Iraqi refugees in the camp is 41.800. 

Al-Abdullah didn’t hide the anxiety of the refugees from arrests on the Iraqi side, confirming that if there are guarantees, no one will remain in the camp. 

According to Al-Abdullah, the Iraqi government considers all Iraqi refugees in Al-Hol camp IS members, noting that a delegation from the Iraqi Directorate of Immigration and Passports came to the camp a while ago and gave them verbal guarantees, but that “is not a real guarantee”, He said. 

The ICRC’s Middle East director, Fabrizio Carboni, said in March that about 20,000 Iraqis would be back from Al-Hol camp within a few weeks under an agreement with the Iraqi government in Baghdad.