America slows down the transfer of Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq

Washington, DC – The US military’s operation to transfer Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq has slowed this week, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. This comes after Iraq requested more time to negotiate with other countries to repatriate their citizens held in the country. Iraq also requested logistical preparations to accommodate larger numbers.

The US military announced on January 21 that it had begun transferring Islamic State detainees from northeastern Syria to Iraq. This followed the rapid collapse of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The collapse raised concerns about the security of the prisons and detention camps that had been under their control.

According to Iraqi judicial and security officials and diplomats, the US had expected to transfer up to 7,000 detainees within days. However, the number actually transferred after more than a week has not exceeded 500. An Iraqi Foreign Ministry official confirmed that this figure represents the number that has arrived in Iraq so far.

Iraqi officials and a Western diplomat explained that Baghdad has asked Washington to slow the pace of the transfers. This was intended to give the Iraqi government time to communicate with other countries regarding the repatriation of their detained citizens. Additionally, the goal was to prepare additional facilities capable of accommodating larger numbers of fighters.

According to Iraqi judicial and security sources, those transferred so far include approximately 130 Iraqis and about 400 foreign nationals of various nationalities. This previously unannounced slowdown is linked to reservations expressed by Western governments regarding the repatriation of their citizens who joined the Islamic State group during its years of control over large swaths of Syria and Iraq.

The group declared its so-called “caliphate” in 2014 before being militarily defeated. Following this, thousands of its fighters, particularly foreigners, were captured and held in prisons in northeastern Syria for years without trial.

The US State Department and Department of Defense have not yet issued an official comment in response to Reuters’ requests for comment on the reasons for the slowdown in the transfers or the next steps regarding the fate of the detainees.