Kyrgyzstan Repatriates 95 from Syria Camps

Al-Hol camp in Syria. AFP file photo
Al-Hol camp in Syria. AFP file photo
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Kyrgyzstan Repatriates 95 from Syria Camps

Al-Hol camp in Syria. AFP file photo
Al-Hol camp in Syria. AFP file photo

Kyrgyzstan said Wednesday that it had repatriated 95 wives and children of militants from detention camps in Syria, in the third such operation by the Central Asian country.

"Thirty-one women and 64 children who are Kyrgyz citizens were transferred from Syria to Kyrgyzstan," said the foreign ministry in a statement, without detailing how many more of its nationals remain in internment camps in northeastern Syria.

Thousands of Kyrgyzstan nationals joined extremist organizations in Syria, and the return of the families of ISIS militants who were captured or killed is a thorny issue for many countries.

The ministry said it was "grateful" to the United States for "full assistance and logistical support" in the operation, as well as thanking UNICEF and the Red Cross.

Kyrgyzstan has already twice taken back its citizens from Syria or Iraq. In March 2021, 79 children were repatriated while in February this year another 59 women and children were returned.



EU Official Says Calls for Lebanon Ceasefire Have Not Been Heard

 Smoke billows over Beirut's southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke billows over Beirut's southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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EU Official Says Calls for Lebanon Ceasefire Have Not Been Heard

 Smoke billows over Beirut's southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke billows over Beirut's southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

A European Union official expressed regret over the failure so far of efforts to forge a ceasefire in the Middle East, saying that fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah has made it more difficult to work for wide-ranging reforms in Lebanon and create conditions to draw international financial aid in.

EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič told The Associated Press in an interview late Tuesday in Manila that stalled reforms in Lebanon include the election of a new president, the establishment of a working government and the signing of a deal with the International Monetary Fund.

“It’s difficult to see that happening in these circumstances when Lebanon is under such a strain,” said Lenarčič, who flew to Manila to attend an Asia Pacific conference on disaster mitigation.

“That’s one of the reasons why we’re calling for a ceasefire, so as to allow Lebanon to organize itself so that it can benefit from all the funding which is out there,” he said. “I regret that we have not been heard.”

The EU was also extremely concerned over the killings of civilians in the fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah group. “This collateral damage is simply unacceptable,” Lenarčič said.