Latest news with #Shukrial-Hajji
Shafaq News
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
UN-backed return: Over 240 families home from Syrian camp
Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, Iraq repatriated more than 240 families from Syria's al-Hol camp as part of a UN-backed agreement, a lawmaker said. Hussein al-Ameri, a member of parliament's Security and Defense Committee, told Shafaq New that the returns follow a 'long-standing' arrangement that permits groups of 50 people at a time to return for psychological and social rehabilitation. The families, previously housed in the al-Hol and al-Hasakah camps in northeastern Syria, crossed into Nineveh province aboard 20 Iraqi buses via the al-Yarubiyah border crossing, according to security and humanitarian officials. 'This is the 25th convoy since returns began and the eighth so far in 2025,' Shukri al-Hajji, head of al-Hol's exit office, told Shafaq News. The convoy was accompanied by US armored vehicles under Global Coalition coordination to ensure safe passage, officials said. Returnees are currently housed at al-Jadaa camp south of Mosul, where they undergo reintegration supported by Iraqi authorities and UN agencies. Future relocation to their original home areas depends on clearance by national security and intelligence services, al-Ameri said. On Tuesday, over 240 families of 860 individuals were also returned as part of the same agreement. Iraq launched the repatriation program in 2021 with international backing. However, it continues to face local opposition, particularly in Nineveh, where families of ISIS victims have raised concerns about the return of former camp residents.
Shafaq News
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
240+ Iraqi families repatriated from Syria's Al-Hol camp
Shafaq News/ A convoy of 241 Iraqi families, totaling over 860 individuals, was repatriated from Syria's Al-Hol camp on Tuesday. The convoy marks the eighth return in 2025 and the 25th such operation since the process began, Shukri al-Hajji, head of the camp's departure office, confirmed. The families' convoy, transported in 20 buses, crossed into Iraq via the Al-Yarubiyah border crossing in eastern Hasakah province, escorted by US armored vehicles under tight security coordinated by the Global Coalition. 'This year's efforts focus on relocating Iraqi families who wish to return, in coordination between the Autonomous Administration and the Iraqi government,' Al-Hajji told Shafaq News. In late March, 186 Iraqi families, totaling 681 people, also left Al-Hol camp and returned to Iraq. Since 2021, the Iraqi government, in collaboration with international organizations, has been executing a plan to bring displaced Iraqis back from Al-Hol. Returnees are received at the Jadaa camp, where they undergo social and psychological rehabilitation. However, the repatriation process continues to face local opposition, especially from families of ISIS victims in Nineveh province, who express concern about reintegrating these returnees into their communities.
Shafaq News
29-03-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Iraq repatriates over 180 families from Syria's al-Hol camp
Shafaq News/ Over 180 Iraqi families were repatriated from Syria's al-Hol camp to Iraq's Nineveh province on Saturday, in the latest phase of Baghdad's ongoing return program. The transfer, which included 186 families of 681 individuals, marked the seventh repatriation operation since the start of 2025 and the 24th overall, according to Shukri al-Hajji, head of the camp's departure office. 'This year's goal is to return all Iraqi families willing to go back, in coordination with the Syrian Democratic Administration and the Iraqi government,' he told Shafaq News. Roughly 20 buses transported the group through the al-Yarubiyah border crossing, east of al-Hasakah. The convoy was accompanied by tight security, including surveillance and air support from US Global Coalition helicopters and fighter jets to ensure safe passage. Ali Abdullah, head of Iraq's National Committee for Implementing the Strategy to Combat Violent Extremism, said last week that al-Hol still houses approximately 16,000 Iraqis, noting that Iraq's al-Jada'a camp continues to receive returnees, and authorities are working to support their reintegration. Iraq has been working with international organizations since 2021 to return its citizens from al-Hol. Families are first brought to the al-Jada'a camp for psychological and social rehabilitation before returning to their home communities — a process that has triggered recurring opposition, particularly in Nineveh, where families of ISIS victims have expressedconcern.
