Hundreds Linked to ISIS Transferred From Syria to Iraq

The notorious Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria holds relatives of suspected ISIS group fighters -- more than 100 people have been murdered there, according to the United Nations Delil SOULEIMAN AFP/File
The notorious Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria holds relatives of suspected ISIS group fighters -- more than 100 people have been murdered there, according to the United Nations Delil SOULEIMAN AFP/File
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Hundreds Linked to ISIS Transferred From Syria to Iraq

The notorious Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria holds relatives of suspected ISIS group fighters -- more than 100 people have been murdered there, according to the United Nations Delil SOULEIMAN AFP/File
The notorious Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria holds relatives of suspected ISIS group fighters -- more than 100 people have been murdered there, according to the United Nations Delil SOULEIMAN AFP/File

Syria's autonomous Kurdish region transferred to the Iraqi government more than 600 relatives of ISIS group members who were detained at the notorious Al-Hol camp, a monitor said Friday.

It is the fourth operation of its kind this year from the camp, which lies less than 10 kilometers (six miles) from the Iraqi border.

In the latest transfer, around "620 people, relatives of ISIS members, left Al-Hol", coordinated between the camp administration and the Iraqi government, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement.

The men, women and children belonged to 150 families and left the camp on Thursday, an official in the Kurdish administration told AFP.

Thousands of foreign extremists joined ISIS as fighters, often bringing their wives and children to live in the "caliphate" declared by the group across swathes of Iraq and Syria in 2014.

Kurdish-led forces backed by a US-led coalition dislodged the militants from their last scrap of territory in Syria in 2019.

Kurdish authorities have repeatedly called on countries to repatriate their citizens from crowded displaced camps, of which Al-Hol is Syria's largest.

More than 100 people, including many women, were murdered in Al-Hol over an 18-month period, the United Nations said in June, calling for camp residents to be returned home.

But nations have mostly received them only sporadically, fearing security threats and a domestic political backlash.

The first repatriation of Iraqi families from Al-Hol, involving around 300 people, took place in May last year.

Iraq should repatriate 500 families in total from Al-Hol this year, the official Iraqi New Agency announced on Wednesday.

In addition to the returned family members, the Iraqi government also received this week about 50 Iraqi ISIS fighters and leaders who were detained by the Syrian Democratic Forces, according to the Observatory.

The SDF spearheaded the fight against ISIS in Syria with the support of the US-led coalition.

In early June, Iraq repatriated another 50 Iraqi ISIS fighters who were detained by Kurdish forces. They were among 3,500 Iraqis held in Syrian Kurdish prisons, a senior military official said at the time.

In April, a senior Iraqi security official said the Al-Hol camp is a security threat and should be dismantled.

It houses around 55,000 people, the United Nations reported in June.



Gaza Ceasefire Talks Held Up by Israel Withdrawal Plans

Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
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Gaza Ceasefire Talks Held Up by Israel Withdrawal Plans

Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Indirect talks between Hamas and Israel for a ceasefire in Gaza are being held up by Israel's proposals to keep troops in the territory, two Palestinian sources with knowledge of the discussions told AFP on Saturday.

Delegations from both sides began discussions in Qatar last Sunday to try to agree on a temporary halt to the 21-month conflict sparked by Hamas's deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

Both Hamas and Israel have said that 10 living hostages who were taken that day and are still in captivity would be released if an agreement for a 60-day ceasefire were reached, reported Reuters.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he hoped to clinch a deal "in a few days", which could then lead to talks for a more permanent end to hostilities.

But one Palestinian source, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the talks, said Israel's refusal to accept Hamas's demand to withdraw all of its troops from Gaza was holding back progress.

Another said mediators had asked both sides to postpone the talks until the arrival of US President Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Doha.

"The negotiations in Doha are facing a setback and complex difficulties due to Israel's insistence, as of Friday, on presenting a map of withdrawal, which is actually a map of redeployment and repositioning of the Israeli army rather than a genuine withdrawal," one Palestinian source said.

The source said Israel was proposing to maintain military forces in more than 40 percent of the Palestinian territory, forcing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians into a small area near the city of Rafah, on the border with Egypt, they added.

"Hamas's delegation will not accept the Israeli maps... as they essentially legitimize the reoccupation of approximately half of the Gaza Strip and turn Gaza into isolated zones with no crossings or freedom of movement," the source said.

A second Palestinian source accused the Israeli delegation of having no authority, and "stalling and obstructing the agreement in order to continue the war of extermination".

- Latest strikes -

The Gaza war began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of at least 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Of the 251 hostages seized, 49 are still being held, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.

At least 57,823 Palestinians, also mostly civilians, have been killed since the start of the war, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

Gaza's civil defense agency said at least 14 Palestinians were killed in the latest wave of Israeli strikes across the territory on Saturday.

More than 30 people were killed on Friday, including 10 people who were waiting for aid handouts, the agency said.

The Israeli military on Saturday said it had attacked "approximately 250 terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip" in the last 48 hours.

Targets included "terrorists, booby-trapped structures, weapons storage facilities, anti-tank missile launch posts, sniper posts, tunnels and additional terrorist infrastructure sites", it added.

Two previous ceasefires -- a week-long truce beginning in late November 2023 and a two-month one from mid-January this year -- led to the release of 105 hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

The second Palestinian source said "some progress" had been made in the latest talks on plans for releasing Palestinian prisoners held by Israel and getting more aid to Gaza.

Netanyahu, who is under domestic and international pressure to end the war, said this week that neutralizing Hamas as a security threat was a prerequisite for any long-term ceasefire talks.

That included the group giving up weapons, he said, warning that failure to do so would mean Israel would have to do so by force.