Our Next Century Foundation Research Officer Cristina De Leo delivers an oral intervention to the United Nations Human Rights Council 56th session through an online platform. She addresses the United Nations regarding the ongoing issue of ISIS-affiliated individuals being detained in the Al-Hol camp in Syria, and calls for all Western governments to repatriate their citizens.

Transcript:

Mr. President,

The Next Century Foundation calls on all Western governments to repatriate their citizens held in the Al-Hol camp in the Syrian Arab Republic. While some countries have initiated the repatriation process, most have done so slowly, and others refuse entirely, resulting in thousands of their citizens and their children still being detained.

Many governments have expressed concerns regarding the threat to domestic security posed by repatriating individuals from the camp who still support ISIS. These concerns are legitimate. However, abandoning radicalised individuals in detention camps abroad sets the stage for an even greater security threat. ISIS supporters in the camp can raise children to become the next generation of fighters or can themselves be smuggled out of the camp by ISIS, meaning that governments would lose track of them.

We also recognize that Western judicial systems may face challenges in dealing with individuals affiliated with ISIS who were involved in non-violent roles and that have not committed any prosecutable crimes. Despite these challenges, surveillance systems can be implemented to monitor their activities post-repatriation.

It is time for Western governments to take responsibility for their citizens, repatriate them and bring them to trial.

Thank you.