ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Two Palestinian orphans whose parents were affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS) have been handed over to the Palestinian consulate in Erbil, an official from northeast Syria (Rojava) said on Wednesday.
“Two orphaned ISIS children from Palestine were handed over to a delegation from the Palestinian consulate in Erbil” on Wednesday, Abdulkarim Omar, the co-chair of Rojava’s foreign relations commission said in a tweet.
The Consulate General of the State of Palestine in coordination with “northern Syria’s foreign affairs office, the two children Kawthar and Ahmad Sharih were received in the presence of their grandfather,” the Consul General to Erbil Nazmi Hazouri told Rudaw.
“We thank the officials in the foreign affairs office, as well as the department of foreign relations in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) for their great and inspiring cooperation in the success of this humanitarian mission,” he added.
It is unclear from which camp the children were taken. The al-Hol and Roj camps, under Kurdish control, hold more than 60,000 people, most of whom have suspected ties to ISIS.
Al-Hol is home to more than 30,000 ISIS-linked foreign nationals, including more than 22,000 foreign children.
Kurdish and US officials have made repeated calls on the international community to repatriate their nationals from the camps, where children are exposed to ISIS ideology, but only a few countries have responded positively. Most are worried about security concerns and are generally limiting repatriations, even for children.
Albania was the latest country to repatriate its nationals, taking back 19 women and children on July 30.
There are fears that al-Hol camp is a breeding ground for terrorism, with the commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM) warning in April that the situation “will become a military problem” in the future if not resolved.
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