US moves ISIS prisoners in Syria to jails in Iraq amid concern over security
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The U.S. is rushing to move captured Islamic State fighters out of northeast Syria amid fears that tensions between pro-government forces and a Kurdish-led militia could lead to a security breakdown and the escape of thousands of militants.
A group of 150 ISIS fighters who have been held at a prison in Hasakah were flown on a U.S. C-17 Wednesday to an undisclosed location in Iraq, U.S. officials said.
Up to 7,000 additional ISIS fighters could be moved to Iraq in the coming days, the officials added. The transfer shows the challenges in building a new order in Syria following the overthrow of former President Bashar al-Assad in December 2024 and fears that ISIS remnants might seize on instability to attempt a comeback. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a deal earlier this week with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that established a cease-fire and called for the integration of individual SDF members into the Syrian army and interior ministry.
The speedy transfer of detainees reflects fears that the truce might collapse or that security at detention centers could fray. “This is because there is little confidence that this cease-fire is going to last," said Charles Lister, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute. “It is also reflective frankly of the fact that the U.S.
does not have the troop capacity to take charge even temporarily of the facilities themselves." The U.S.-led coalition defeated ISIS militants and collapsed their self-declared caliphate in 2019. But remnants of the group have been attempting to regroup. The militant group has long sought to swell its ranks through prison breaks.
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