Concern over north-east Syria security amid fears IS militants could re-emerge

"Concerned western officials said they were closely monitoring the deteriorating security situation in north-east Syria amid fears that Islamic State militants could re-emerge after the Kurdish defeat at the hands of the Damascus government. The US military said it had transported 150 IS fighters from a frontline prison in Hasakah province across the border to Iraq, and said it was willing to move up to 7,000 to prevent what it warned could be a dangerous breakout."

"The dramatic advance of Syrian government forces, halted by a fragile ceasefire on Tuesday, resulted in prisons holding former IS fighters and a camp of over 23,000 IS women and children changing hands in a chaotic fashion within a few days. Though other high-profile female detainees, such as Shamima Begum, are thought to remain in the still Kurdish-controlled al-Roj camp in the extreme north-east of Syria, reports of escapes and a loss of control remain a source of anxiety in Europe. Reports are conflicting, but at least some of the women and families held at al-Hawl camp may have been able to leave."

"Reprieve, a human rights campaign group, estimates there are about 55 men, women and children from the UK or with a claim to UK nationality held in north-east Syria, though many like Begum have had their British citizenship removed. An estimated 120 IS militants escaped on Monday from the Shaddadi prison after it was seized from Syrian Kurdish forces in a bloody fight, although the Syrian government said that 81 had been recaptured since. Al-Hawl camp, holding more than 20,000 women, originally from about 70 countries, changed hands on Tuesday amid conflicting reports that at least some of the women detained there had been able to leave after Kurdish forces departed."

Western officials are closely monitoring the deteriorating security situation in north-east Syria amid fears that Islamic State militants could re-emerge after a Kurdish defeat by the Damascus government. The US military transported 150 IS fighters from a frontline Hasakah prison to Iraq and said it could move up to 7,000 to prevent a dangerous breakout. Kurdish sources identified the prison as Panorama, holding men from numerous countries, including some with UK ties. The Syrian government’s rapid advance, paused by a fragile ceasefire, saw prisons and camps including al-Hawl and Shaddadi change hands, with reports of escapes and at least 120 militants fleeing. Al-Hawl holds over 20,000 women from about 70 countries; estimates identify roughly 55 people with UK nationality links, many stripped of citizenship.

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