Hasaka, northeast Syria – The United States has repatriated an American child from a displacement camp in northeast Syria, the State Department said on Tuesday, renewing calls for other nations to bring home their citizens.
“Approximately 30,000 individuals from more than 70 countries remain in two displaced persons camps in northeast Syria, the majority of whom are children under the age of 12; they deserve a chance at life outside the camps.” the department said in a statement.
Washington reiterated that “The only durable solution to the humanitarian and security crisis” is for foreign governments to take responsibility for their citizens.”
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria is also preparing to transfer a group of Syrian families from Al-Hol camp back to their home areas on Wednesday.
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Last month, the administration said it planned to release 43 Syrian families from the camp, which houses tens of thousands of people, many of them relatives of suspected Islamic State (ISIS) fighters. The transfers are being coordinated with the Syrian transitional government and the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).
Head of the Displacement Affairs Office in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, Sheikhmus Ahmed told +963 that the departing families are classified as humanitarian cases requiring medical and social support and would be relocated to their original areas in Aleppo province.
However, no decision has been made regarding thousands of other displaced Syrians in Al-Hol, as no formal agreement with the government in Damascus has yet been reached, Ahmad added.
