AL-HOL, Syria – In al-Hol camp, where at least 13 people were murdered in January and conditions are poor, the families who can leave are doing so.
“We came here to protect our kids. We were looking for a safe place. However, in the camp, we aren't safe at all. Therefore, we are leaving it, not to mention the shabby tent we are living in,” said camp resident Em Hiba.
Al-Hol houses nearly 62,000 Syrians, Iraqis, and foreigners. More than 80 percent of them are women and children. Thousands are wives and children of Islamic State (ISIS) fighters.
“We are seriously concerned over the deteriorating security situation in al-Hol camp in northeast Syria,” said the spokesperson for the UN’s humanitarian organization (OCHA) Jens Laerke in Geneva on January 22.
The UN’s counterterrorism chief Vladimir Voronkov urged countries to bring home the 27,000 children stranded in the camp, telling a recent Security Council meeting that “the horrific situation of the children in al-Hol is one of the most pressing issues in the world today.”
Most European nations are reluctant to repatriate their nationals with suspected ties to ISIS, citing security risks.
The Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria, known as Rojava, have appealed for help and called for governments to take responsibility for their own citizens, saying the large camp is a security risk.
To ease the burden, authorities have permitted some Syrian families to return to their homes.
Ali Muhammed, head of the camp’s office, said they were preparing to send 67 families back to Manbij. Other groups have already returned to Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Hasaka.
Video footage: Arab24, filmed January 29, 2021
Editing and translation by Sarkawt Mohammed
