SDF captures ‘dangerous’ ISIS member in al-Hol camp raid

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Monday announced arresting a “dangerous” Islamic State (ISIS) member in an ongoing operation carried out by Kurdish forces in the notorious al-Hol camp in northeast Syria (Rojava).

The SDF said in a statement that security forces in Rojava conducted “a special operation in the al-Hol area, capturing a dangerous ISIS terrorist who was responsible for planning major terrorist attacks and had been wanted by military and security forces for two years.”

A number of weapons and ammunition were seized during the operation, according to the statement.

On Sunday, the SDF announced the arrest of at least ten suspected ISIS members.

Al-Hol camp is located in Hasaka province and has been branded a breeding ground for terrorism. The majority of people in the camp are originally from Syria and Iraq, though it also houses people from around the world who traveled to the Middle East to live in the so-called ISIS caliphate.

The SDF and partner forces on Wednesday launched “Operation Enduring Security” in and around al-Hol in response to intensified ISIS attacks. The Kurdish-led forces have since arrested tens of suspected ISIS members in the camp.

Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria have repeatedly called on the international community to repatriate their nationals from al-Hol, but many countries are hesitant to take back their citizens due to security concerns.

The SDF, which controls northeast Syria, fought the lion’s share of the battle against ISIS and arrested thousands of the group’s fighters along with their wives and children when they crushed ISIS territorially and took the group’s last stronghold in Syria in 2019.