France has brought 51 compatriots from prison camps in north-eastern Syria back to their home country. They are 35 children and 16 women.
„The minors have been placed in the care of the Youth Welfare Office and the mothers have been handed over to the competent legal authorities,“ said a statement from the French Foreign Ministry.
Changed government stance
This repatriation to France is the largest in terms of numbers since the Islamic State militia was crushed. Albert Daguet, a member of an association campaigning for the rights of those detained in Syria, said:
„For us, this is a first victory. The French government is changing its position 180 degrees. For the first time in three years, women are being brought back together with their children, something that was previously impossible. The French state has had an uncompromising attitude until now. We appreciate the change. „
France has repatriated 51 compatriots from detention centres in north-eastern Syria. They are 35 children and 16 women.
„The minors have been placed in the care of the Youth Welfare Office and the mothers have been handed over to the competent legal authorities,“ a statement from the French Foreign Ministry said.
Change in the government’s attitude
This repatriation to France is the largest in terms of numbers since the Islamic State militia was crushed. Albert Daguet, a member of an association that campaigns for the rights of those detained in Syria, said:
„For us, this is a first victory. The French government is changing its position 180 degrees. For the first time in three years, women are being brought back together with their children, something that was previously impossible. The French state has had an uncompromising attitude until now. We appreciate the change. „
Not among those repatriated are his daughter and her son. „I have one grandson. Though I have four children, it is the only grandson. He is almost three and a half years old and I have never been able to hug him or hold him in my arms. It’s a nightmare. You just couldn’t see an end to it. Now a light has been lit at the end of the tunnel,“ says Daquet.
Émilie K. allegedly called for attacks
One of France’s best-known female jihadists, 37-year-old Émilie K., has been brought back to France as part of the current operation. She is accused of calling for attacks in the Western world and recruiting people for the militia Islamic State. She herself went to Syria in 2012. An arrest warrant has been issued for Émilie K..
Before the current return home, a total of 126 people had already been flown out of Syrian prisons to France.
