Between States of Movement

New research by ME Consulting Solutions (MECS) reveals the plight of Islamic State’s women and children, and the process of re-integration of returnees.

In March 2019, media attention focused on Al-Baghouz as fighters from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) made their last stand against the Global Coalition and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The fall of this small Syrian village on the border with Iraq signified the territorial demise of Islamic State’s ‘Caliphate’ almost five years after its official declaration in June 2014.

Military operations targeting Islamic State not only resulted in the detention of thousands of combatants, but also displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Al-Baghouz alone caused the forced movement of 65,000 women and children to Al-Hol camp in Northeast Syria.

From May 2019 until October 2020, around 1,000 former ISIL combatants and 2,000 of their family members were released from SDF custody, mostly via informal return and re-integration processes involving tribal leaders. Since the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) announced a general amnesty for Al-Hol on 10 October 2020, a further 5,000 have reportedly been released. Whether bereft of killed or imprisoned former fighters, abandoned by dispersed insurgent cells or even accompanied by demobilised combatants, the current and future status of ISIL-affiliated families, as well as their susceptibility to ISIL ideology, remains uncertain.

Against this backdrop, MECS conducted research in April this year on the perceptions of the re-integration of former ISIL combatants and their families in Northeast Syria. This study surveyed 780 people, evenly distributed between former combatant households and host populations, across 12 communities in Ar-Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor.

Of the 390 members of formerly ISIL-affiliated households interviewed by MECS, 73% were released from Al-Hol camp, mostly although not exclusively through the tribal sponsorship system. Three-quarters of these households are female-headed.

In addition to respondents from formerly ISIL-affiliated households and host communities, MECS also interviewed key stakeholders and convened focus group discussions, including tribal leaders involved in the sponsorship system, to further contextualise and corroborate results. Based on a comparative analysis of participant perspectives, MECS captured the following findings with which to guide re-integration efforts moving forward.

Tribal sponsorship represents an increasingly upward trend that accounts for around two-thirds of all reported cases of returns from camps in Northeast Syria. Through this system, former combatant families can apply for, and subsequently secure, release once their request has been sponsored by a tribal leader from the area of return, approved by the corresponding Civil Council of the AANES and vetted by the designated camp administration in conjunction with the local branch of the SDF. This research also discovered an emerging trend of ‘financial sponsorship’, an alternative modality exclusively evident in Deir-ez-Zor, whereby bribes are exchanged for the release of former ISIL combatants and their families. Amid exposed vulnerabilities to arbitrary delays and parallel systems, participants recommend improving coordination between AANES authorities and tribal leaders in addressing gaps, formalising procedures as well as accelerating release and transfer protocols.

Respondents confirmed that challenges persist in attaining official documentation for former combatant households, such as family records, ID cards and birth certificates. Of growing concern is the legal status of children associated with foreign ISIL combatants as Syrian mothers are unable to pass over citizenship. This situation, which affects 16% of interviewed households, causes considerable obstacles for children in accessing essential services. Since the Government of Syria presides over official civil registries, and while waiving documentation requirements for children should act as a short-term solution, participants believe this issue will only be resolved by establishing a civil registry east of the Euphrates that is linked to, yet administered separately from, Damascus.

MECS identified a notable misperception in the support provided to formerly ISIL-affiliated families. Even though they are generally assessed as living in poorer conditions, these families receive disproportionately higher volumes of cash and humanitarian assistance than host communities. In particular, the reliance on cash assistance as a primary source of income for former combatants’ households has gradually risen from 0.5% to 9.2% since 2020, at a much higher rate compared to the local population in Northeast Syria. This growing discrepancy threatens to foster resentment and compound social tensions. Mitigating this risk to re-integration requires efforts that clearly convey messages to local populations on the criteria by which returnees receive aid as well as evaluating outputs to ensure that projects are designed and delivered based on needs, regardless of whether they emanate from returnee or host communities.

This research illustrated that enhanced access to education is not only beneficial for the integration of children from former combatant households, contributing to reduced rates of child labour in the process, but it also supports the positive perception of the family. Although 82% of respondents from host communities express fears that a resurgence in ISIL activity might disrupt re-integration and result in the radicalisation of former combatant households, the same percentage accepts that education is the optimal method for assisting re-integration efforts and combatting radical ideologies. They also advocate for inclusive approaches to education that avoid situations in which the potential bullying of ISIL-associated children leads to high drop-out rates, drug use and criminality.

Reinforcing the previous point, host communities interpret the resurgence of ISIL ideology and support catalysed by remnant ISIL activity as the most pressing long-term risk to re-integration. Punctuated by ISIL’s attack on Ghweiran Prison in Al-Hasakeh City in January 2021, yet intermittently apparent across Ar-Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor, participants consider the continued existence and prevailing conditions of camps, like Al-Hol, as a significant risk to re-integration and the region more broadly. Improving the effectiveness of the re-integration process both facilitates safe and sustainable returns while also alleviating security concerns by working towards the closure of camps.

While evidencing the progress and urgency of re-integration as the desired outcome, this research emphasised that the process should be approached and applied incrementally. This observation is informed by tracking the attitudes and perception of families that have been undergoing re-integration for a longer period. Low acceptance amongst host communities towards former combatants specifically, and their families generally, signifies a disconnect in respective perceptions on returns in general, and re-integration specifically. This discrepancy cautions against the rapid implementation or disjointed management of the re-integration process without sufficiently communicating with or preparing local communities.

Operating as a US-administered detention facility from 2003 to 2009 during the Iraq War, Camp Bucca is credited with creating conducive conditions for sharing, solidifying and spreading grievances that galvanised the embryonic nucleus of the ISIL generation into action. A deliberate yet diligent approach to returns and re-integration is the best chance for the legacy of camps in Northeast Syria to avoid the same tainted brush of infamy.

Mohammed Shikh Aiyob is the Founder and Director of ME Consulting Solutions. Dr Caelum Moffatt is MECS’s Deputy Director. MECS is a specialised research company that examines post-conflict challenges and provides practical solutions with the aim of grounding social change in local perspectives. For further business enquiries or consulting services, please contact Talin Kdikian on talin@meconsulting.solutions.