No earthquake damage to prisons holding ISIS detainees: Coalition General

“We are tracking no damage to SDF-controlled facilities right now minus some minor cracks that we continue to monitor.”
The Gweran prison in Hasakah Province holds hundreds of ISIS detainees (Photo:  Islam Youssef/Kurdistan 24).
The Gweran prison in Hasakah Province holds hundreds of ISIS detainees (Photo: Islam Youssef/Kurdistan 24).

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Major General Matthew McFarlane, the commanding general of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, told Kurdistan 24 during a press conference on Tuesday that the latest earthquake did not cause coalition material damage to facilities controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

“First, let me start off by expressing my condolences for all those affected by the damage and the losses, loss of human life from the earthquake, both in Syria and Türkiye,” he said. “We continue to monitor the situation very closely, and specifically track any possible threats that seek advantage from such a tragic situation.”

However, he said the coalition is not “seeing the Islamic State take advantage of this right now, specifically in regards to damage to facilities.” 

“We are tracking no damage to SDF-controlled facilities right now minus some minor cracks that we continue to monitor, but no structural damage that puts any of the facilities at risk,” he stated. 

“We continue to monitor both the threats and potential threats to detention facilities very closely with the SDF as they continue to guard ISIS prisoners across northeast Syria,” he concluded.

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi last week told the Kurdish Peace Institute that the Raqqa prison that holds 1,000 ISIS fighters was damaged. “There is a possibility that the structure could collapse.”

He also said ISIS is focusing on how to take advantage of the situation. “If the earthquake had been a bit stronger, we could have seen the detention centers collapse. These centers were not built to be used as detention centers,” the SDF leader said.

“I think one of the main things that we and the Coalition should focus on is doing our best to repair and reconstruct these detention centers and fix what needs to be fixed before we see any other disasters,” he concluded.