Syria
Members of the Syrian Kurdish Asayish security forces stand guard at the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, on April 18, 2025, as the Syrian Democratic Forces mount a security campaign against IS "sleeper cells" in the camp. Photo: Delil Souleiman/AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Twenty Islamic State (ISIS) militants were arrested during a six-day operation by Kurdish forces at the notorious al-Hol camp in northeast Syria (Rojava), the Kurdish forces announced on Wednesday.
The internal security forces (Asayish) in Rojava stated that “to ensure security and stability and confront the growing threats posed by terrorist cells and remnants of ISIS,” Kurdish forces have “completed a security operation inside al-Hol Camp,” which led to “arrest of 20 ISIS members and collaborators.”
The operation also dismantled “a dangerous ISIS cell that had been coordinating with other cells to carry out terrorist activities.” The Kurdish forces additionally seized “three Kalashnikov rifles, a pistol, several magazines and rounds of ammunition, in addition to military equipment.”
Alongside the Asayish, the operation saw the participation of the Women’s Internal Security Forces, the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) and the support of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The Kurdish forces further thwarted “a coordinated mass escape attempt involving cells inside and outside the camp.”
Al-Hol and Roj camps in northeastern Syria primarily house individuals with suspected ISIS affiliations. These camps are managed by the Kurdish-led SDF and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), with support from international organizations.
Al-Hol is the larger of the two, currently housing 34,927 individuals linked to ISIS, including 15,861 Syrians, 15,681 Iraqis, and 6,385 third-country nationals, according to data obtained by Rudaw English in mid-April.
Meanwhile, Roj camp houses around 2,000 individuals, primarily women and children associated with ISIS.
Kurdish forces have long warned of the growing threat posed by ISIS, particularly within these camps.
On Wednesday the Asayish stated that the recent “military and political” developments in the region, “have given ISIS cells the opportunity to increase their movement and carry out terrorist acts.” They urged the international community to assume responsibility in addressing the issue of these camps and to support AANES in “effectively and safely managing this complex dossier.”
ISIS captured vast swathes of Iraqi and Syrian territory in 2014, and lost control over much of them by 2019, but its sleeper cells continue to pose a security threat.
Following a swift offensive in December, a coalition of opposition groups led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) toppled the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.
ISIS has tried to take advantage of the changing security landscape in Syria after the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad.
SDF chief Mazloum Abdi in mid-January noted that 10,000 ISIS fighters are imprisoned in Syria, 2,000 of whom are considered "highly dangerous." He stressed the “need to intensify efforts to continue the fight against ISIS if we don’t want to see it make a comeback.”
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