Detained women try to kidnap security guards in al-Hol camp

In the al-Hol refugee camp in northeastern Syria—home to families of ISIS fighters—detained women have tried to kidnap their guards, leading to gunfire that killed one child and injured others.

Sheikhmus Ahmed, head of the Autonomous Administration’s refugee and displaced persons department, said that some camp residents had tried to kidnap their guards. No identifying information has emerged on the victims, Ahmed told Associated Press on Monday.

Another official working in the camp, speaking on condition of anonymity “in line with the regulations,” said that he was unaware of the attempted kidnapping. Seven women and children had been injured during riots in a small section of the camp mostly reserved for foreign women and children, AP quoted the official as saying.

This section of the camp is known as the Annex and is heavily guarded, with 2,000 women from 57 countries and about 8,000 children.

There are about 50,000 Syrians and Iraqis in the camp, about 20,000 of whom are children, AP reported.

The camp incident came days after Islamic State leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi was killed in a U.S. raid on his hideout in northwestern Syria on February 3rd.

The incident also comes two weeks after ISIS fighters attacked Ghweran prison in Hassakeh city, where some 3,000 fighters are being held.

The attack on the prison, which occurred during ten days of fighting between the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and ISIS fighters, left nearly 500 people dead. Ultimately, SDF succeeded in securing control of the prison.

On January 12th, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Syria issued a statement condemning the killing of an employee of a local humanitarian organization in the camp.

Violence in the camp has increased over the past year, the statement said, noting that the United Nations has received death reports for 90 civilians, of Syrian and Iraqi nationality.

Source: Syrian Observer