Islamic State prison riot underscores fragile security in northeast Syria
The issue of what to do with Islamic State prisoners in northeast Syria continues to be a nagging problem.
As battle-hardened Islamic State prisoners grow increasingly restless in northeast Syria’s detention centers, Kurdish authorities are warning of their potential to exploit gaps in security while the international community’s attention is focused elsewhere.
IS fighters took control of a large prison in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasakah on Saturday, according to the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that run the facility. The riot ended a day later when the SDF and members of the American-led coalition fighting IS negotiated with the militants.
SDF spokesperson Kino Gabriel told Al-Monitor the talks with the detainees included their demands for improved living conditions and greater access to information about their fates.
“There is no timeline. We are working to make their living situation better, but it’s not something easy that we can do,” said Gabriel. “It’s our demand to the international community to reach a solution on this.”
