Deaths continue to stack up: a policeman shot dead with a pistol equipped with a silencer; a local official gunned down, his son wounded; an Iraqi man beheaded.
In total, 20 men and women were killed last month in the sprawling camp in north-east Syria housing families of ISIS members.
The slayings in Al Hol camp – nearly triple the deaths in previous months – are largely believed to have been carried out by ISIS militants punishing perceived enemies and intimidating anyone who strays from their extremist line, according to Syrian Kurdish officials who run the camp but say they struggle to keep it under control.
The jump in violence intensifies calls for countries to repatriate their citizens resident in the camp, which is home to about 62,000 people. Those repatriations slowed dramatically because of the coronavirus epidemic, officials said. If left there, the thousands of children in the camp risk being radicalised, local and UN officials said.
“Al Hol will be the womb that will give birth to new generations of extremists,” said Abdullah Suleiman Ali, a Syrian researcher who focuses on extremist groups.
It has been nearly two years since the US-led coalition captured the last sliver of territory held by ISIS, ending the extremist group's self-declared caliphate that covered large parts of Iraq and Syria.
The war lasted several years and left US-allied Kurdish authorities in control of east and north-east Syria, with a small presence of several hundred US forces still stationed there.
Since then, the remaining ISIS militants have gone underground in the Syrian-Iraqi border region, continuing an insurgency. Although there are fewer attacks in Syria than there were in late 2019, ISIS sleeper cells continue to attack Syrian government troops, forces of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and civilian administrators.
Al Hol houses the wives, widows, children and other family members of ISIS militants – more than 80 per cent of its 62,000 residents are women and children. The majority are Iraqi or Syrian, but about 10,000 people from 57 other countries are housed in a highly secured separate area known as the Annex. Many of them are die-hard ISIS supporters.
The camp has long been chaotic, with the hardcore militants among its population enforcing their will on others and seeking to prevent them from co-operating with Kurdish authorities.
ISIS cells in Syria are in contact with residents of the camp and support them, said a senior Kurdish official, Badran Cia Kurd. “Anyone who tries to reveal these contacts or stops dealing with Daesh is subjected to death,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.
The US-backed SDF tweeted last week that, backed by air surveillance from the coalition, they detained an ISIS family smuggler in the area of Hadadia near the camp.
“There are several reasons behind the increase of crime, including attempts by Daesh members to impose their ideology in the camp against civilians who reject it,” said Mr Ali, the researcher.
Of the 20 killings at Al Hol in January, at least five of the dead were female residents of the camp, according to the Rojava Information Centre, an activist collective that tracks news in areas controlled by the SDF. All the victims were Syrian or Iraqi citizens, including a member of the local police force, and most were killed in their tents or shelters at night, the RIC said.
Most of the victims were shot in the back of the head at close range, according to the RIC and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor in Britain.
On January 9, a gunman killed a policeman in the camp using a silenced pistol, then as other police chased him, he threw a hand grenade that seriously wounded the patrol commander, the Observatory said. The same day, an official with a local council dealing with Syrian civilians in the camp was shot to death and his son critically wounded.
In another case, an Iraqi camp resident was decapitated, his head found some distance from his body, the RIC reported. It is believed he was killed on suspicion that he was co-operating with authorities.
The immediate cause for the increase in killings was not known. In November, Kurdish authorities began an amnesty programme for the 25,000 Syrian citizens in the camp, allowing them to leave. Some speculate that, since those taking amnesty must register and work with authorities, the programme may have prompted slayings to keep residents in line.
Many Syrians fear leaving the camp because they may face revenge attacks in their hometowns from those who suffered under ISIS rule.
Whatever the cause, the bloodshed points to ISIS's strength in the camp. The local civilian Kurdish authority known as the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria said in late January that some elements were trying to revive ISIS and that the authority could not face this crisis on its own.
ISIS supporters in the camp carry out trials of residents suspected of opposing them and kill defendants, and authorities have uncovered several ISIS cells in the camp, it said. “Contacts are ongoing between the camp and Daesh commanders outside who direct their members inside,” it said.
About 27,000 non-Syrian children are stranded in Al Hol, including about 19,000 Iraqi children and 8,000 from other countries. On January 30, UN counterterrorism chief Vladimir Voronkov urged home countries to repatriate the children because they are at risk of radicalisation.
The coronavirus pandemic brought a drop in the already slow process of repatriation. Many countries are reluctant to take back their citizens, although France repatriated seven children in January and Britain one child in September.
Iraq has taken back very few. Repatriation by other countries dropped in 2020 to only 200 children, from 685 in 2019, according to Save the Children.
“These new figures show that before the outbreak of the virus, things were finally starting to move in the right direction,” said Save the Children’s Syria response director Sonia Khush.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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Children who witnessed blood bath want to help others
Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.
As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.
Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.
“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”
Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.
“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”
Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
What is hepatitis?
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.
There are 5 main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E.
Hepatitis C is mostly transmitted through exposure to infective blood. This can occur through blood transfusions, contaminated injections during medical procedures, and through injecting drugs. Sexual transmission is also possible, but is much less common.
People infected with hepatitis C experience few or no symptoms, meaning they can live with the virus for years without being diagnosed. This delay in treatment can increase the risk of significant liver damage.
There are an estimated 170 million carriers of Hepatitis C around the world.
The virus causes approximately 399,000 fatalities each year worldwide, according to WHO.
In The Heights
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Stars: Anthony Ramos, Lin-Manual Miranda
Rating: ****
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
New Zealand T20 squad
New Zealand T20 squad: Tim Southee (captain), Finn Allen, Todd Astle, Hamish Bennett, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway (wicketkeeper), Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Ish Sodhi, Will Young
IPL 2018 FINAL
Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (20 ovs)
Chennai Super Kings 181-2 (18.3 ovs)
Chennai win by eight wickets
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
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The years Ramadan fell in May
More from Neighbourhood Watch
The five pillars of Islam
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Allardyce's management career
Clubs (10) - Limerick (1991-1992), Perston North End (1992), Blackpool (1994-1996), Notts County (1997-1999), Bolton Wanderers (1999-2007), Newcastle United (2007-2008), Blackburn Rovers (2008-2010), West Ham United (2011-2015), Sunderland (2016), Crystal Palace (2016-2017)
Countries (1) - England (2016)
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Company%C2%A0profile
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Six pitfalls to avoid when trading company stocks
Following fashion
Investing is cyclical, buying last year's winners often means holding this year's losers.
Losing your balance
You end up with too much exposure to an individual company or sector that has taken your fancy.
Being over active
If you chop and change your portfolio too often, dealing charges will eat up your gains.
Running your losers
Investors hate admitting mistakes and hold onto bad stocks hoping they will come good.
Selling in a panic
If you sell up when the market drops, you have locked yourself out of the recovery.
Timing the market
Even the best investor in the world cannot consistently call market movements.
Read more about the coronavirus
Ipaf in numbers
Established: 2008
Prize money: $50,000 (Dh183,650) for winners and $10,000 for those on the shortlist.
Winning novels: 13
Shortlisted novels: 66
Longlisted novels: 111
Total number of novels submitted: 1,780
Novels translated internationally: 66
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
How Sputnik V works
