Thread by @RojavaIC

All 25,000 Syrian nationals will be released from Hol Camp in a "general amnesty", vastly relieving pressure on the camp & meeting demands from local Arab communities, Syrian Democratic Council chief @ElhamAhmadSDC announces at a public consultation in Raqqa.

[Video: @SDCPress].

"Hol Camp is a heavy burden on the shoulders of the AANES," said Ms. Ahmed.

"AANES is not obliged to pay exorbitant sums in order to provide these people with food and other things, let alone [deal with] the problems that arise daily including assassinations, rape, and so on."

"A ruling will be issued to empty the camp of Syrian nationals. Those who remain in the camp will no longer be the responsibility of AANES, meaning they will be considered to be detainees."

The Syrian nationals will be returned home in increments under tribal sponsorship.

Over 4000 Syrian nationals have already been returned home from Hol Camp to Deir-ez-Zor and Raqqa, with tribal sheikhs guaranteeing they won't affiliate with ISIS any more.

The new ruling will see all the remaining Syrians - 17,000 of whom are children - released.

30,000 Iraqis including 20,000 children, and 10,000 foreign nationals including 7,000 children, will remain in Hol.

It's not clear what will happen with the Iraqis - repatriations to Iraq have all but stopped, with AANES complaining the Iraqi govt. isn't responding to requests.

The move could open the way to more international support on care and security of the foreign nationals, Ms. Ahmed implied.

AANES has long condemned the lack of international action over foreign ISIS members in its care, and will conduct its own trials for foreign ISIS members.

Arab communities in NES have long pushed for such releases, most recently in demands by tribal sheikhs in Deir-ez-Zor following local unrest.

Ms. Ahmed spoke at the second leg of a public consultation in Raqqa. Read our summary of the first session here:
rojavainformationcenter.com/2020/10/transl…

For more info on the complex case of ISIS-linked detainees in NES, see our 2019 report 'Bringing ISIS to Justice'.

With trials for foreign nationals in the pipeline plus the new amnesty for Syrians, movement is expected in this field in the coming months.
rojavainformationcenter.com/storage/2019/0…

We asked Arin Sheikhmous, co-chair for refugees, IDPs and camps in North and East Syria, to clear up some details of the decision.

He said: "For the Iraqis, our aim is to return them home, but the Iraqi Government is dragging out the process.

"We aim to release all Syrians held in Hol - first, all those from North and East Syria [primarily Deir-ez-Zor and Raqqa.]

For those from regime and Turkish-controlled regions, we are still discussing the mechanism, but we aim to find guarantors and release these people too."

We've been providing comments, contacts and info to press following this important development.

See @washingtonpost's coverage here:

washingtonpost.com/world/kurdish-…

No-one will be forcibly evicted from Hol, @ElhamAhmadSDC confirms:

"Only the Syrian families who wish to leave Hol are to leave. The families of foreign fighters and Syrians [facing] serious accusations will remain in the camp. The status quo of the camp will remain the same."