NEW YORK: The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic has noted with grave concern that tens of thousands of civilians displaced by recent battles to capture the last enclaves of the so-called “Islamic State” in eastern Syrian are languishing in makeshift camps.
The Commission of inquiry in its recent report said many people are being interned and undergoing security screening by Syrian Democratic Forces, others, including the families of ISIL fighters, are being held separately – in legal limbo – as their countries of origin refuse to repatriate them. All detained individuals are enduring appalling and inhumane conditions of shelter, health, and hygiene.
Inevitably, this has led to preventable deaths, primarily due to the lack of adequate humanitarian assistance together with untreated conflict related injuries and/or ill-health resulting from months of constant bombardment. Up to 240 children have reportedly already perished due to malnutrition or untreated infected wounds.
This untenable situation appears to be the result of a lack of preparedness by SDF and its international coalition partners for the scores of IDPs that have emerged from ISIL controlled areas in eastern Syria.
This, however, is not the first time. In February last year, the Commission first reported on how hundreds of thousands of civilians displaced by international coalition and SDF battles to defeat ISIL were similarly interned in makeshift camps unfit to meet their basic needs. Since then, more battles has only meant that the situation has further deteriorated.
Al-Hol camp in Hasakah – which was initially built to house up to 10,000 IDPs – presently holds over 73,000 (92 percent of them women and children; 15 percent of them third-country nationals). The Commission notes that efforts are underway to improve this situation with the UN and international organizations providing relief assistance.
The assistance provided thus far, however, has been wholly insufficient. Every effort must now be made by the international community to assist in speeding up the provision of humanitarian aid to these displaced individuals, including by Member States who have obligations under Security Council Resolution 2249.
Moreover, after individuals in SDF camps are vetted for potential security threats, there is no indication that they are in fact granted freedom of movement. Rather, tens of thousands remain confined to IDP camps including even after their status is deemed to be “civilian.” Bearing in mind over 60,000 of these individuals are Syrian nationals, encamped residents who are deemed not to pose an imminent threat to security must be immediately released.
Aside from Syrians, some 15 percent of the residents at al-Hol, or at least 11,000 persons, are third-country nationals, many of whose countries of origin are refusing to repatriate them solely because they are assumed to be families of ISIL fighters.
Certain Member States have taken the further steps of either stripping these citizens of their nationalities to prevent their return, or approving their transfer to countries where they may be subject to torture, ill-treatment, or the death penalty in violation of the principle of non-refoulment.
The Commission reminded all parties to the conflict including Member States that the ICCPR states very clearly “No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his (her) own country,” and the UN Human Rights Committee has noted that “there are few, if any, circumstances in which deprivation of the right to enter one’s own country could be reasonable.”
