It is stated that many ISIS prisoners managed to escape. At least 120 people lost their lives in the clashes between the US-backed Kurdish forces and ISIS militants in Syria, which left behind for the fourth day. It is stated that 7 civilians are among the dead.
According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, as part of the clashes, ISIS militants freed many detainees and seized weapons held in the prison. The Observatory said that since the beginning of the attack, at least 77 ISIS members, as well as 39 Kurdish fighters, including members of the police, guards and counter-terrorism forces, have been killed.
“Fierce fighting broke out at midnight on Sunday as Kurdish forces attempted to restore control of the prison and neutralize ISIS fighters stationed in neighboring areas,” the Observatory said. Local sources said that more than 100 ISIS prisoners were caught trying to escape, but many ISIS members managed to escape.
ISIS attacked the prison
The clashes began on Thursday evening, when more than 100 ISIS members attacked the Gvajran prison in the Kurdish-controlled city of Hasakah. The prison, which is said to hold approximately 3,500 ISIS militants, has the distinction of being the prison with the highest number of jihadists in the country.
The action in question was the biggest attack by the terrorist organization since 2019, when it was militarily demolished in Iraq and Syria. Experts evaluate the attack in question as a kind of reorganization move by ISIS.
Hundreds of IS militants have been released, the IS propaganda channel Amak said on Saturday. In another video released by the organization, several men, some of them wearing military uniforms, are seen, which ISIS claims to have smuggled out of prison. In the statement made by the SDG (Syrian Democratic Forces) regarding the video, the accuracy of which could not be confirmed, it was noted that the people seen in the video were the “kitchen workers” of the prison.
support from the USA
On the other hand, the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) confirmed that the US-led anti-ISIS coalition carried out air strikes in support of the SDF.
US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price also stated that ISIS militants have been making efforts to kidnap ISIS fighters in prison for more than a year, adding that the SDF and the military coalition “prevented many attacks” and prevented the latest attacks from being “more severe”. The Syrian Democratic Forces, which is the main backbone of the YPG, which is described as the PKK’s extension in Syria, is described by the US as an “ally” in the fight against ISIS.
accusations against the SDG
According to the US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), around 12,000 men and boys are held in SDF-controlled prisons with suspected links to ISIS. Among this, there are people who are citizens of about 50 foreign countries, between 2 and 4 thousand.
On the other hand, human rights organizations point to the existence of some secret prisons where thousands of people are held. The SDG says the accusations in question do not reflect the truth. According to HRW and some other organizations, people in overcrowded prisons are held in inhumane conditions. According to the relatives of some of the detainees, some of the detainees are young children and detainees who were arrested for opposing the SDF’s compulsory military service or on baseless charges.
Some Arabs, who make up the majority of the population in many regions under the control of the YPG, accuse the Kurds of discrimination. The detention of large numbers of Arabs in the prisons of the SDF without any charge or trial had led Arab tribes to accuse the Kurdish administration of racial discrimination. Kurdish authorities deny these allegations.
AFP,Reuters/BU,JD
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