UK government set to repatriate some British citizens from Syria

Britain had previously ruled out any type of rescue mission for citizens stranded in Syria


Thousands of foreign nationals are stranded in camps scattered across northeastern Syria (AFP)

By Areeb Ullah
Published date: 21 November 2019 19:32 UTC | Last update: 4 hours 28 min ago

The UK government is set to repatriate some British citizens stranded in Kurdish camps holding individuals who had fled territory controlled by the Islamic State group in northeastern Syria.

Britain has been one of the few European countries who had previously dismissed any plan to repatriate citizens left stranded in Syria.

Previously, UK officials said it was too dangerous to send British personnel into Syria to retrieve individuals who had travelled to IS-held territory.

Those stranded in Syria include minors and infants born to suspected IS members.

The United Nations has also urged countries to take responsibility for its citizens left abandoned in northern Syria.

Turkey meanwhile has begun to deport European nationals suspected of travelling to Islamic State-controlled territory in Iraq and Syria.

Last week, Turkey deported several suspected Islamic State members back to Britain, Denmark, Germany and the United States.

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said that Turkey had nearly 1,200 foreign members of IS in custody, and had captured 287 during its offensive in Syria.

The Hurriyet newspaper said Wednesday that 959 suspects were being prepared for deportation, with the largest numbers coming from Iraq, Syria and Russia.

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