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The delegation that goes to Syria is mainly from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to information from Expressen. The trip is being conducted in consultation with local authorities in Kurdish-controlled areas in northeast Syria.
This is the second time in just over a year that Sweden has sent a delegation to the site. The last time representatives of the local Kurdish government met. That trip was led by Foreign Ministry Ambassador Per Örneus, Sweden’s special envoy for the Syrian crisis. The result was then that the seven children of the dead terrorist Michael Skråmo returned to Sweden.
At that time, no camps were visited, according to Örneus previously.
But this time, the delegation will meet Swedish IS families in the Kurdish-led SDF-controlled camps, according to various sources from Expressen.
– They should sit down with each woman at the same time and ask if she agrees to their children returning to Sweden, says a source.
IS women: They said children can return
Expressen has previously spoken with Islamic State women in the camps who said they were visited multiple times in 2019 by Swedish officials inside the camps – a man and a woman who should have asked if they can imagine themselves separated from children.
– They said that the children can return to Sweden but only if we leave them, said then one of the IS women.
The Stockholm Foreign Ministry has not previously commented on the information. Now, the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs writes in a comment to Expressen:
“As stated above, the opportunities for the Foreign Service to operate in northeastern Syria are extremely limited. The consular unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continually reviews the possibilities to repatriate children found in northeastern Syria whenever necessary. possible. For security reasons and with regard to consular secrecy, we cannot comment on whether or when visits are made to the area. ”
“I hope I can make the trip soon”
Shiyar Ali is the Swedish representative for self-government in northern Syria. He confirms that a trip to the camps is planned, but that the corona pandemic has complicated it.
– We work for many countries to send representatives. We have worked with Finland that was there before the pandemic and with Sweden. We hope we can make the trip soon, he says.
According to information from Expressen, the trip is already underway and the delegation will soon be in place.
According to Shiyar Ali, France has already done something similar, separating children from their mothers, when the children felt bad.
– Then the women said “you can take our children” and they had to sign. Otherwise, our laws do not allow children to be separated from their mothers. In certain specific cases, for humanitarian reasons or in case of illness, the possibilities can be discussed. But otherwise you shouldn’t, even if Sweden wants it, says Shiyar Ali.
Local authorities of Kurdish autonomy in northern Syria have for some time been planning to bring ISIS members captured in the camps to justice.
– On the other hand, those who are considered less dangerous, especially those in the camps, will undergo a legal process. We have planned it together with the European Institute of Peace. We cannot take thousands of people to court. So it takes a while and it’s expensive, says Shiyar Ali.
Easier process for those in the camps
He believes that about 30 percent of the people in the camps can undergo a faster and simpler process.
– They may have been tricked or exploited. If they admit what they have done, they will receive limited punishment and then go home. But, those of whom we have evidence, and those we know have committed serious crimes, must be tried in an international court. It is the men who are in prison, says Ali.
Many of the women who chose to join ISIS or move into the “caliphate” were married in Syria and had children there. Sometimes there are women who remarried and had children multiple times after their husbands were killed in battle.
– With the help of DNA, we have identified most of them. But there are still those who do not tell the truth and we do not know who they are. Most are identified. There may be some children with connections to Sweden who have not yet been identified, says Ali.
In the spring of 2019, Michael Skråmo’s children were reunited with their grandfather Patricio Gálvez. Watch the interview where he talks about the meeting.
In September, Expressen reported that several Swedish Islamic State women and their children had been arrested and taken into Turkish custody.
