{"id":469854,"date":"2026-02-15T09:17:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:17:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/469854\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T09:17:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T09:17:07","slug":"us-says-over-5700-suspected-isil-detainees-relocated-from-syria-to-iraq-isil-isis-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/469854\/","title":{"rendered":"US says over 5,700 suspected ISIL detainees relocated from Syria to Iraq | ISIL\/ISIS News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"article__subhead\">Iraqi authorities confirm the transfer, saying detainees of 61 nationalities have arrived in the country.<\/p>\n<p>Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a03 mins<\/p>\n<p>info<\/p>\n<p>Published On 15 Feb 202615 Feb 2026<\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p>share2<\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<p>The United States has announced the completion of the transfer of more than 5,700 suspected ISIL (ISIS) detainees from Syria to Iraq.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe 23-day transfer mission began on Jan 21 and resulted in US forces successfully transporting more than 5,700 adult male ISIS fighters from detention facilities in Syria to Iraqi custody,\u201d the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement on X on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p>Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/1\/21\/us-begins-transferring-isil-linked-detainees-from-syria-to-iraq\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">operation was completed<\/a> after a night flight from northeastern Syria to Iraq took place on February 12, \u201cto help ensure ISIS detainees remain secure in detention facilities\u201d, CENTCOM added.<\/p>\n<p>The US had previously announced it would transfer about 7,000 detainees.<\/p>\n<p>The detainees from some 60 countries had for years been held in Syrian prisons run by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) before the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/1\/21\/syria-takes-control-of-camp-holding-thousands-linked-to-isil\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">recapture of surrounding territory<\/a> by the Syrian government prompted the US to step in.<\/p>\n<p>ISIL swept across Syria and Iraq in 2014, committing massacres and forcing women and girls into sexual slavery.<\/p>\n<p>Backed by US-led forces, Iraq proclaimed a victory over ISIL in the country in 2017, and the SDF ultimately defeated the armed group in Syria two years later.<\/p>\n<p>The SDF went on to jail thousands of suspected fighters and detain tens of thousands of their relatives in camps.<\/p>\n<p>Iraq\u2019s National Centre for International Judicial Cooperation (NCIJC) said 5,704 ISIL detainees of 61 nationalities had arrived in Iraq. They include 3,543 Syrians, 467 Iraqis, and another 710 detainees from other Arab countries.<\/p>\n<p>There are also more than 980 foreigners, including those from Europe, Asia, Australia and the US.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe appreciate Iraq\u2019s leadership and recognition that transferring the detainees is essential to regional security,\u201d said CENTCOM head, Admiral Brad Cooper. \u201cJob well done to the entire Joint Force team who executed this exceptionally challenging mission on the ground and in the air.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4314509\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/getty_699166a28e-1771136674.jpg\" alt=\"AL HASAKAH, SYRIA - JANUARY 26: Detainees are seen between tents at the al-Hol camp on January 26, 2026 in Al Hasakah, Syria. The al-Hol camp (also spelled Al-Hawl) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province has come under control by Syrian government forces, following the withdrawal of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in recent days. The camp houses around 24,000 people, many of whom are women and children, with alleged links to the jihadist group Islamic State (IS), also referred to as ISIS in the region. Clashes between the SDF and government forces this month over the former's integration with state institutions has seen large swaths of Kurdish-controlled territory ceded. Under a ceasefire agreement, camps and prisons housing ISIS detainees previously held by the US-backed Kurdish forces are to be transferred to the government. The United Nations (UN) has said it will take over management of al-Hol, resuming the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the camp, amid dire conditions. (Photo by Abdulmonam Eassa\/Getty Images)\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/>Detainees at the al-Hol camp in Syria\u2019s northeastern Hasakah province [File: Abdulmonam Eassa\/Getty Images]<\/p>\n<p>The NCIJC said Iraq\u2019s judiciary will interrogate the detainees before taking legal action against them.<\/p>\n<p>Last month, Syrian troops drove the SDF from swaths of northern Syria, prompting questions over the fate of the ISIL prisoners. Lingering doubts about security pushed the US to announce it would transfer them to Iraq to prevent \u201ca breakout\u201d that could threaten the region.<\/p>\n<p>Iraq has issued calls for countries to repatriate their nationals among the ISIL detainees, though this appears unlikely.<\/p>\n<p>For years, the SDF also called on foreign governments to take back their citizens, but this was done on a small scale and remained limited to women and children held in detention camps.<\/p>\n<p>Most foreign families have left northeast Syria\u2019s al-Hol camp, which is the largest camp holding relatives of ISIL fighters, since the departure of the SDF, which previously guarded it, humanitarian sources told the AFP news agency on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>Al Jazeera\u2019s Assad Beig said the al-Hol camp, established in 2019 after ISIL was defeated in Syria, developed a \u201cnotorious reputation\u201d over the years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAid workers documented the killings and underground ISIL enforcement groups, while security officials warned it was a breeding ground for future armed groups,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Iraqi authorities confirm the transfer, saying detainees of 61 nationalities have arrived in the country. Listen to this&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":469855,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,14945,171400,129,3,1207,21,19,22,20,25,1209,24],"class_list":{"0":"post-469854","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-iraq","10":"tag-isil-isis","11":"tag-middle-east","12":"tag-news","13":"tag-syria","14":"tag-united-states","15":"tag-united-states-of-america","16":"tag-unitedstates","17":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","18":"tag-us","19":"tag-us-canada","20":"tag-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/469854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=469854"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/469854\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/469855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=469854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=469854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=469854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}