Dozens of Iraqi nationals repatriated from al-Hol, leaving the camp ‘practically empty’

191 Iraqi nationals from Syria’s al-Hol have been repatriated to their country, the United Nationals High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Friday, as authorities look to evacuate the camp’s residents and close the facilities.

UNHCR representative Gonzalo Vargas Llosa said the agency provided full logistical and field support throughout the residents’ journey "from community sensitization and registration to accompanying the convoy to the border".

Al-Hol camp, located in Syria’s Al-Hassakeh governorate approximately 13 kilometres from the Iraqi border, housed upwards of 73,000 residents after the defeat of the Islamic State group in 2019 and was controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

It was notorious for its violence and poor conditions.

After Syrian government forces captured it from the SDF last month, authorities began mass repatriation efforts for its residents with the aim of closing the facility.

Al-Hol hosted families from more than 20 Arab and foreign nationalities. The country with the largest number of citizens at the camp has been Iraq, with Iraqis at one point numbering about 24,000 people.

Some of the residents had family members in the Islamic State extremist group members but others were displaced due to fighting along the border.

Speaking to The New Arab’s sister outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Iraqi military adviser Major General Safaa al-Aasam said the current emphasis of rapidly transferring Iraqis from al-Hol is "an urgent necessity imposed by security considerations" as well as "growing risks to societal stability and national security".

"The continued presence of thousands of Iraqis, including women and children, in the camp for long periods exacerbates security challenges", al-Aasam says.

"The fragile environment inside camps can contribute to the creation of complex social and psychological conditions, which may negatively affect the future of returnees if rehabilitation and social reintegration programs are delayed".

The families repatriated on Friday were received by Iraqi authorities along the border and transferred to designated rehabilitation centres at al-Jadaa camp in the Nineveh governorate.

There, the residents are expected to undergo rehabilitation courses before being allowed to return to the homes which they were forced to leave prior to the occupation of the Islamic State group in the country from 2014.

"This requires treating their return as a humanitarian priority to ensure their protection and reintegration into Iraqi society within a safe and stable environment", the Major General said, adding that children make up the largest portion of Iraqis in the camp and are "victims of exceptional circumstances".

There have been at least 33 batches of repatriations since the camp's control was transferred to Syrian government authorities, with only a few thousand residents believed to be left.

The UNHCR’s Vargas Llosa, in his statement on Friday, said the camp was left "practically empty".

The Iraqi government had said it expected to complete the repatriation of its citizens from al-Hol by the end of 2026 or early 2027, with the aim of closing the al-Hol camp and dismantling its infrastructure altogether.

The US military has been involved in the transfer to Iraq of IS militants previously held at detention camps in Syria, where Baghdad has said they will be prosecuted and tried.