Latest news with #SheikhmousAhmed
Qatar Tribune
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Kurds reach deal with Syria on repatriation of IS-affiliated families
dpa Beirut The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in north-eastern Syria have reached a deal with the Syrian government to begin repatriating Islamic State-affiliated families from the Al-Hol camp, a monitor group and Kurdish sources confirmed on Tuesday. The agreement, announced by senior SDF official Sheikhmous Ahmed, stated that a joint mechanism will be established to facilitate the return of 'Syrian families' from the camp. 'This agreement will not include foreign fighters and their families,' Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The development follows a high-level meeting involving SDF representatives, Syrian government officials and members of the US-led international coalition, Kurdish sources said. Farhad al Shami, head of the SDF media centre, said: 'There is no change in the status or management of the Al-Hol camp. The Syrian Democratic Forces will continue their duties with increased intensity and consistent support from the concerned international powers.' Al-Hol camp, located in north-eastern Syria, currently holds around 40,000 people, mostly women and children with suspected ties to the Islamic State.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Kurds reach deal with Syria on repatriation of IS-affiliated families
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in north-eastern Syria have reached a deal with the Syrian government to begin repatriating Islamic State-affiliated families from the Al-Hol camp, a monitor group and Kurdish sources confirmed on Tuesday. The agreement, announced by senior SDF official Sheikhmous Ahmed, stated that a joint mechanism will be established to facilitate the return of "Syrian families" from the camp. "This agreement will not include foreign fighters and their families," Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told dpa. The development follows a high-level meeting involving SDF representatives, Syrian government officials and members of the US-led international coalition, Kurdish sources said. Farhad al Shami, head of the SDF media centre, told dpa: "There is no change in the status or management of the Al-Hol camp. The Syrian Democratic Forces will continue their duties with increased intensity and consistent support from the concerned international powers." He added that the agreement reached pertains to the transfer of families affiliated with the Islamic State extremist militia organization who are originally from areas under government control, such as Hama and Aleppo. "This has been a long-standing demand by the SDF, but the transfer had been repeatedly delayed due to the lack of a responsible party to receive them," he said, adding that the transfer process will begin "once the objective conditions for receiving such cases by the government are in place." Al-Hol camp, located in north-eastern Syria, currently holds around 40,000 people, mostly women and children with suspected ties to the Islamic State.
Nahar Net
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Syria's govt and Kurds reach agreement on returning families from notorious camp
by Naharnet Newsdesk 27 May 2025, 11:47 Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria announced Monday they have reached an agreement with the transitional government in Damascus to evacuate Syrian citizens from a sprawling camp in the desert that houses tens of thousands of people with alleged ties to the militant Islamic State group. Sheikhmous Ahmed, an official in the Kurdish-led authority that controls the country's northeast, said an agreement was reached on a "joint mechanism" for returning the families from al-Hol camp after a meeting among local authorities, representatives of the central government in Damascus and a delegation from the U.S.-led international coalition fighting IS. Ahmed denied reports that administration of the camp will be handed over to Damascus in the near future, saying "there was no discussion in this regard with the visiting delegation or with the Damascus government." Human rights groups for years have cited poor living conditions and pervasive violence in the camp, which houses about 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of IS fighters as well as supporters of the militant group. They also include Iraqis as well as nationals of Western countries who traveled to join IS. The U.S. military has been pushing for years for countries that have citizens at al-Hol and the smaller, separate Roj Camp to repatriate them. Iraq has taken back increasing numbers of citizens in recent years, but many other countries have remained reluctant. As for Syrians housed in the camp, a mechanism has been in place for several years to return those who want to go back to their communities in the Kurdish-controlled areas, where centers have been opened to reintegrate them. Before now, however, there had not been an agreement with the government in Damascus to return them to areas under the central government's control. The new agreement comes amid attempts to increase the cooperation between Kurdish authorities and the new leaders in Damascus after former President Bashar Assad was unseated in a rebel offensive in December. Under a deal signed in March between Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the SDF is to be merged into the new government armed forces. All border crossings with Iraq and Turkey and airports and oil fields in the northeast are to come under the central government's control. Prisons where about 9,000 suspected members of the Islamic State group are held are also expected to come under central government control. The deal marked a major step toward unifying the disparate factions that had carved up Syria into de facto mini-states during its civil war that began in 2011 after the brutal crackdown by Assad's government on massive anti-government protests. However, implementation has been slow. Washington has been pushing for its enactment and, in particular, for Damascus to take over management of the prisons in northeast Syria.
Euronews
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Syrian government and Kurds to evacuate families from al-Hol camp
Syria's national government and Kurdish authorities in the northeast of the country have agreed to evacuate Syrian citizens from a desert camp that houses people with alleged ties to the so-called Islamic State group (IS). Al-Hol camp holds around 37,000 people, many of whom are the wives and children of the IS group's fighters. Sheikhmous Ahmed, an official in the Kurdish-led authority in northeast Syria, announced on Monday that an agreement had been reached to return Syrian families from the desert camp, following talks between local leaders, representatives from Damascus, and a delegation from the US-led international coalition fighting IS. The representatives did not talk about whether Damascus would take control of the camp in the future, Ahmed said. A previous mechanism had allowed Syrians in al-Hol to return to their communities in Kurdish-controlled areas of the country, with centres established to reintegrate them. However, this was not the case for the rest of Syria, where a civil war raged for 13 years until dictator Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December after a lightning offensive by rebel groups. The US has long urged countries to allow the return of their citizens from al-Hol and the smaller Roj camp, which have been described as breeding grounds for extremism. Although Iraq has repatriated many of its citizens in recent years, many other countries remain reluctant to do so. The agreement on Syrian nationals comes as part of an attempt at closer cooperation between Kurdish authorities in the northeast and the government in Damascus. In March, Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), agreed that the SDF would be merged into the new national army. All border crossings with Iraq and Turkey will come under Damascus' control, as will airports and oil fields in the northeast. The US has pushed for the central government to take control of prisons in northeast Syria, where around 9,000 alleged former IS group fighters are being held. A new aid distribution system in Gaza has opened its first hubs on Monday, according to the US-backed organisation in charge of the operation. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) is taking over the handling of aid from other international organisations such as the United Nations which has criticised the new body as ineffective. The US-registered non-profit aims to distribute food, water and hygiene kits to Palestinians via distribution hubs secured by private contractors. A letter released by the foundation says it aims to serve up to 1.2 million people through aid distribution centres in the Gaza Strip, providing direct assistance through bypassing traditional aid models. The Gaza Strip has been under a nearly three-month Israeli blockade on food and aid supplies — a measure Israel's allies have publicly questioned. The foundation said truckloads of food had been delivered to its four local hubs in southern and central Gaza and announced that more trucks with supplies would be delivered on Tuesday. The flow of aid would increase daily, the group said. Its operations begin a day after the resignation of its executive director, Jake Wood, who left the position citing concerns over its independence and impartiality. 'I am proud of the work I oversaw, including developing a pragmatic plan that could feed hungry people, address security concerns about diversion, and complement the work of longstanding NGOs in Gaza,' Wood said in a statement. 'However, it is clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, which I will not abandon,' he added. The GHF said it was "disappointed" by Wood's resignation. Meanwhile, the organisation has warned against Hamas, which it said was "more focused on tearing this apart" than allowing aid to flow into the Gaza Strip. The GHF said Monday that Hamas was making "death threats" towards aid groups supporting the mission at its distribution sites. The foundation has released images said to have been taken in the southern city of Rafah showing people carrying boxes. Israel and the US have backed the foundation, with both countries saying it was designed to prevent Hamas from stealing critically needed aid from civilians. Aid groups such as the UN have pushed back against the organisation, saying it would fail to meet local needs and affect the displacement of Palestinians, and violates humanitarian principles that prevent a warring party from overseeing humanitarian aid control. Israel has argued it is not directly involved in the distribution of aid but would provide security and support for the plan. It's not clear who is funding the initiative, which is comprised of former humanitarian, government and military officials. Its distribution points are guarded by private security firms, the GHF said.
Asharq Al-Awsat
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Syria's Govt and Kurds Reach Agreement on Returning Families from Notorious Camp
Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria announced Monday they have reached an agreement with the transitional government in Damascus to evacuate Syrian citizens from a sprawling camp in the desert that houses tens of thousands of people with alleged ties to the ISIS extremist group. Sheikhmous Ahmed, an official in the Kurdish-led authority that controls the country's northeast, said an agreement was reached on a 'joint mechanism' for returning the families from al-Hol camp after a meeting among local authorities, representatives of the central government in Damascus and a delegation from the US-led international coalition fighting ISIS. Ahmed denied reports that administration of the camp will be handed over to Damascus in the near future, saying 'there was no discussion in this regard with the visiting delegation or with the Damascus government." Human rights groups for years have cited poor living conditions and pervasive violence in the camp, which houses about 37,000 people, mostly wives and children of ISIS fighters, as well as supporters of the group. They also include Iraqis as well as nationals of Western countries who traveled to join ISIS. The US military has been pushing for years for countries that have citizens at al-Hol and the smaller, separate Roj Camp to repatriate them. Iraq has taken back increasing numbers of citizens in recent years, but many other countries have remained reluctant. As for Syrians housed in the camp, a mechanism has been in place for several years to return those who want to go back to their communities in the Kurdish-controlled areas, where centers have been opened to reintegrate them. Before now, however, there had not been an agreement with the government in Damascus to return them to areas under the central government's control. The new agreement comes amid attempts to increase the cooperation between Kurdish authorities and the new leaders in Damascus after former President Bashar al-Assad was unseated in an opposition offensive in December. Under a deal signed in March between Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the SDF is to be merged into the new government armed forces. All border crossings with Iraq and Türkiye and airports and oil fields in the northeast are to come under the central government's control. Prisons where about 9,000 suspected members of the ISIS group are held are also expected to come under central government control. The deal marked a major step toward unifying the disparate factions that had carved up Syria into de facto mini-states during its civil war that began in 2011 after the brutal crackdown by Assad's government on massive anti-government protests. However, implementation has been slow. Washington has been pushing for its enactment and, in particular, for Damascus to take over management of the prisons in northeast Syria.
