France repatriates 16 women and 35 children of ISIS families from Syria

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – French authorities on Sunday repatriated 16 women and 35 children from ISIS families, who were in camps in northeast Syria.

“Yesterday, Sunday 03 July, the AANES (Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria) handed over 16 French women and 35 children of Daesh (ISIL) families to an official French delegation from the French MFA, after signing an official handover document between the AANES and the French government,” tweeted the co-chair of AANES’ Foreign Relations Department, Abdulkarim Omar, on Wednesday.

Yesterday, Sunday 03 July, the AANES handed over 16 French women and 35 children of Daesh (ISIL) families to an official French delegation from the French MFA, after signing an official handover document between the AANES and the French government.@francediplo_AR pic.twitter.com/2RjUbeZkE7

— Dr Abdulkarim Omar (@abdulkarimomar1) July 5, 2022

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the civilian AANES in northeast Syria have repeatedly called on foreign countries to repatriate their citizens stuck in Syria.

The US-led coalition has also pushed foreign countries to repatriate third nationals from northeast Syria.

However, several Western countries have been reluctant to repatriate their citizens due to legal and security risks and domestic opposition to the repatriation of ISIS suspects.

There are fears ISIS returnees could pose a security threat to their home countries.

Read More: Belgium repatriates 6 women and 16 children from Syria

Also, on June 20, the AANES handed over six Belgian women and 16 children belonging to ISIS families to a delegation from Belgium’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.