ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Security forces in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Tuesday announced that a total of 53 suspected Islamic State (ISIS) group members have been arrested so far during their latest counterterrorism operation at al-Hol camp.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Asayish spokesman Ali al-Hassan said that five “leaders” of the group active in the camp were arrested, noting that the campaign is continuing, with the participation of 5,000 Asayish members, supported by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
"We affirm our full commitment to human rights and international treaties that protect human rights, as our forces worked according to all humanitarian standards to conduct the campaign," he said.
Asayish on Sunday announced the launch of a security campaign in al-Hol camp in northern Syria, which it said was "targeting ISIS cells deployed in the camp," located 45 km east of the city of Hasaka in northeastern Syria.
Al-Hol is currently home to around 61,000 people, mostly women and children linked to ISIS militants. Almost 40,000 of them are foreigners.
The latest operation was launched with the aim of eliminating ISIS sleeper cells in al-Hol, believed to be responsible for an uptick in murders at the camp.
Forty-five people have been murdered at al-Hol since January 1, 2021, according to data provided to Rudaw English by the Rojava Information Centre (RIC). Twenty people were murdered at the camp in January, and 10 were murdered in February. The SDF said last week that 15 people have been murdered at the camp thus far in March.
The UN and human rights organizations have urged countries to take back their citizens in Rojava and put adults suspected of crimes on trial.
