Al-Hawl, the most dangerous camps in the world… Could it become a factory for terrorism?
“Al-Hawl continues to pose significant threats, security and political risks, as well as varying humanitarian, human rights, and legal dilemmas.” This camp, which houses camps for members of the terrorist group ISIS after their defeat in the battle of Baghuz, is home to thousands of Iraqi refugees and displaced Syrians, in addition to thousands of people of about 54 Arab and Western nationalities, including families of the terrorist group’s leaders and members.
Official and United Nations human rights reports have revealed the level of crimes taking place inside the camp, the prevalence of killings and the fact that terrorist elements are carrying out their punitive and aggressive practices, according to their religious and ideological literature, indicating the risks that have become certain, but not likely, as the camp has become an incubator for radical ideas in its ISIS version. This makes children and adolescents inside the camp adjacent to the Syrian-Iraqi border carriers of violence.
According to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) guarding the camp, the terrorist group is regrouping, while smuggling money into camps that can be used to buy weapons, plan attacks and escape.
Syrian columnist Ahmad Sheikho says: What is happening now, and what the SDF is warning against, is an affirmation of what all local and foreign observers have warned of, namely the danger of families of the terrorist group ISIS gathering in camps that have become similar to cities, in addition to adjacent to civilian residential areas.
This number is larger than the population of many cities in northeast Syria, and all reports, press, official, and human rights, in addition to personal and field observations, confirm that these women are educating their children on the values and principles of the terrorist organization. The women of ISIS consider this education, that is, the dismemberment of children, as a continuation of “jihad” according to their perspective, convictions, and goals.
He continued: “The terrorist group is not over, and all efforts to combat it have reached their limits so far, temporarily, but the danger exists, and the support continues, but there is no international will to end this file, which can explode at any moment.”
A statement issued by the SDF said, “The organization continues to pose an imminent threat to our regions and the world, especially through its cells, as it seeks to restore its deteriorating organization and revive its dreams, restore its geographical control over some areas, and pose a threat to the lives of the residents.”
The statement, issued by the SDF on the fourth anniversary of the defeat of ISIS and its last organizational stronghold in Baghuz, east of Deir Ezzor, called on the international coalition to double its security efforts, increase security cooperation and coordination “in a manner that matches the level of the terrorist threat, dry up the organization’s resources, and eliminate conditions that help it.”
