Security campaign launched to sweep al-Hol Camp

The announcement was made today through a statement issued by the General Command of the Internal Security Forces in North and East Syria. The statement was read in the camp by Colonel Mahmoud Al-Hussein of the Internal Security Forces and YPJ spokesperson Roken Jamal. The statement read:

“Recently, the region has witnessed numerous developments, both militarily and politically, which have provided an opportunity for ISIS terrorist cells to mobilize and carry out terrorist acts, taking advantage of the security vacuum in certain areas of Syrian territory. Several terrorist operations have been carried out targeting civilians and our military forces, in addition to attempts to recruit and reorganize their ranks.

Al-Hol Camp, which is considered one of the key locations the terrorist organization aims to infiltrate, exploits families still clinging to extremist ideologies to support it. Recently, the camp has seen repeated attempts by ISIS cells to smuggle families, as well as dozens of documented cases of threats and assaults against camp residents.

This camp, which is an exceptional case with tens of thousands of ISIS-affiliated families residing within, is a current and future humanitarian and security crisis, especially given the absence of comprehensive solutions from the international community and the burden being left solely on the Autonomous Administration. The cessation of international support to the camp has led to increased instability and amplified humanitarian and security challenges.

It is well known that the organization continually attempts to indoctrinate children and young people with extremist ideology through an organized campaign imposed on the camp’s residents. Humanitarian organizations operating inside the camp have also been subjected to numerous attacks. In an effort to prevent this terrorism from achieving its goals, our forces have carried out dozens of preemptive operations against the organization’s hideouts in various times and locations.

Based on our humanitarian and military principles, and as a continuation of our efforts in combating terrorism, we, the Internal Security Forces, the Women's Internal Security Forces in North and East Syria, and the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ), with the support of the Syrian Democratic Forces, hereby announce the launch of a security campaign to sweep al-Hol Camp and its surroundings. This campaign is based on precise intelligence gathered by our security forces regarding the presence of organized terrorist cells inside and outside the camp attempting to reactivate and destabilize the camp and its surroundings.

Through this operation, we reaffirm our commitment to humanitarian values and our ongoing efforts to eliminate the sources of terrorism that threaten the safety of our people and the world.”

A-H

ANHA