THE ISIS CAMPS PUSHED TO BREAKING POINT
TRUMP: “WE HAVE WON AGAINST ISIS”
In 2019 ISIS was defeated.
And world leaders celebrated.
But three years later we’re in Northern Syria. Only to find…that’s far from the truth.
Fighting ISIS has changed now. They operate secretly. They attack and then disappear. They’re known as ISIS sleeper cells.
“THE DANGER OF ISIS SLEEPER CELLS IS ALWAYS PRESENT”
We met with one of the SDF’s commanders.
The SDF are the Syrian Democratic Forces. They control this region of Northern Syria and are backed by the US & UK to defeat ISIS.
He told us they need more help to defeat ISIS completely.
ISIS’ PRISON BREAK
In January 2022, ISIS launched their biggest attack in years.
A truck bomb blasted a hole in a wall of a Syrian prison.
British and American forces were brought in.
It took 10 days to regain control.
It's thought more than 500 people died and predicted hundreds of prisoners escaped.
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Free to rejoin ISIS and fight again.
SUSPECTED BRITISH ISIS MEMBER: “I DON’T KNOW IF YOU CAN COMPLETELY RID THE WORLD OF THESE GROUPS”
Journalists haven’t been inside since the attack. But we’re one of the first to be let in, to speak to a suspected British ISIS member.
Ibrahim is from Leicester. And at 21, he travelled to join ISIS in Syria.
I asked him if he wanted to go back to the UK.
THE PRISON CAMPS
But it wasn’t just men who joined.
Thousands of women packed up their stuff and left their homes to join ISIS in Syria.
We then decided to move up north. To meet the women who decided to leave their homes and travel to Syria.
They’re kept in prison camps and guarded by the YPJ - the Kurdish Women’s Protection Unit. They had a huge part in fighting and bringing down ISIS.
And provide that same support in these ISIS detention camps.
“ISIS CHILDREN ARE THE MOST DANGEROUS”
Natawi joined the YPJ, the women's Kurdish protection unit, because she wanted to defend her country from ISIS.
She’s now worried about ‘the next generation of ISIS’.
“ISIS KEEPS THREATENING…WE DON’T WANT TO BE SAVED BY THEM”
After spending four days going back and forth to the camp, Hoda Muthana agreed to sit down and talk to me.
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She left the US when she was 20 to travel to Syria.
And now she’s held here in Roj camp. And says ISIS keeps threatening the administration.
“ISIS IS AN INTERNATIONAL ISSUE THAT REALLY NEEDS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF”
We wanted to find Sevinaz. I knew she was one of the many Syrian Kurds who went into the camps when ISIS first fell.
She helped women like Hoda when they decided to leave ISIS. But also Shamima Begum.
Shamima made headlines around the world when at 15, she left London to join ISIS in Syria.
I wanted to know what she thought should happen to the women and children in those camps.
But also, is it fair that it’s left to people like Sevinaz to deal with this situation?
SO…WHAT’S NEXT?
When we got back home, we contacted both the UK and US governments.
We asked them: How worried should we be about ISIS right now? And will there be a time when they’re not a threat?
Well, both countries said they were committed to tackling the threat of ISIS
And the US made clear it will be civilian efforts, so the work of all the people in Syria which will lead to a more stable world for all.
So as far as we know, the situation will probably stay the same.
Foreign prisoners in unstable prisons, protected by guards that are asking for help.
And with ISIS fighters all around, waiting for their next opportunity to attack.
Follow us on Twitter @thenewsmovement and we’ll post any updates.