Islamic State terrorists in Kurdish custody in northern Syria are beginning to ask to return to their home countries. The Agence-France Presse (AFP) reported that Kurdish authorities say more than 50 nationalities are represented in the prisons, holding more than 12,000 ISIS suspects. AFP was given permission to tour one of the detention facilities in northeastern Syria where ISIS suspects are being held.
AFP reported that prisoners from dozens of countries “that don’t want them” are “crammed into poorly fortified jails.” Before having any feelings of sympathy, remember these inmates are “accused of carrying out widespread atrocities I territory it once controlled across Iraq and Syria, including mass executions, rape, enslavement and torture, much of it filmed for propaganda.”
Hundreds of prisoners have life threatening wounds and “amputation stumps” which are indicative of the fighting “that led to IS’s final territorial defeat” by Kurdish-led fighters of the against U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Now what? President Trump has been telling the world that the United States is done policing the region and taking responsibility for terrorists who belong to dozens of countries. Those countries naturally do not want them back and were perfectly content having the United States and Kurdish forces keeping ISIS fighters locked up and out of their respective nations’ hair.
President Trump has suggested the countries the terrorists came from take them back to go through their own justice and prison systems. One 22 year-old prisoner left his home of Wales at the age of 17 to fight with his brother in Mosul, the Iraqi city where the Islamic State’s caliphate was initiated told the AFP reporter he wants to go home. He also said he wished he hadn’t answered the 2014 call to arms issued by al-Baghdadi. Baghdadi was killed only hours after the AFP spoke with the prisoner.
AFP reports that “close to a third of the prison’s population is sick and needs treatment for a variety of wounds and conditions that include hepatitis and AIDS.” One 24-year-old Belgian lifted his shirt showing a wound from a fellow jihadist who accidentally shot him while cleaning his gun. The Belgian is one of only 300 “lucky” ones allowed to spend the night in the medical ward.
Another 42-year-old Dutch-Egyptian who suffered loss of the ability to use his right leg, “tricked his wife into traveling to the ‘caliphate’ with the promise of a holiday in Turkey.” The man told AFP he didn’t tell her the truth because he didn’t want her to be scared. But now, all he wants is to see her and his children again. “They can hang me after that, I just want to tell her I’m sorry I took them in a country at war.” Fascinating how being imprisoned in less than ideal situations suddenly makes terrorists second-guess their decisions.
