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Canadian parliament calls on government to repatriate citizens from northeast Syria

Few Canadians have been brought home from camps for Islamic State families in northeast Syria, and many remain there.
A picture taken on Feb. 6, 2020, shows some of the 35 Russian orphans linked to the Islamic State group, arriving at the de-facto Syrian Kurdish capital of Qamishli after being transferred from al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria.

A Canadian parliament committee has recommended the government repatriate Canadians from Islamic State (IS) camps in northeast Syria.

The Canadian House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs released a report on June 9 about children’s rights during the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee noted there are 45 Canadian citizens being held in al-Hol and Roj camps in northeast Syria, where the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) keeps IS-affiliated detainees. The group of Canadians consists of eight men, 13 women and 24 children, most of whom are under the age of 6.

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