RAQQA, Syria — The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have released a seventh batch of women formerly affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) from al-Hol camp after years of detention. This release further carries out a November 2020 decision issued by the autonomous administration of northeast Syria to empty al-Hol camp of Syrian families.

Those released the evening of July 22 included 82 families (229 women and children). Most were under detention for familial links to IS fighters who were killed or are in SDF prisons.

One woman who was released, Khadija al-Ahmad, also known as Om al-Mughira, told Al-Monitor she was relieved to have gotten out of the camp with her three children. "Life there is complicated, especially in terms of health issues; there’s no real health care. In addition to the poor security situation, we were threatened by Islamic State cells in the camp that said we must reveal any contact with the Syrian Democratic Forces that controlled and managed the camp."

The 36-year-old woman, who had been detained in al-Hol since February 2019, said, “We had to go to the SDF administration offices to register to get out of the camp, but IS cells considered that to be dealing with the enemy. As a result, dozens of threats were made, involving assassination and murder in many cases.”