On August 28, Syrian Kurdish security
forces backed by the US launched an operation targeting Daesh sleeper cells in
Al-Hol camp, in northeast Syria. The mission was intended to stabilize the
detention facility, which holds thousands of internally displaced people and
families of suspected Daesh members.
اضافة اعلان
But more than a month after the raids began — and
despite hundreds of arrests – Daesh remains entrenched in Al-Hol. Violence in
the camp has reached record levels, and at least 44 people have been killed
this year in Daesh-initiated attacks.
The failure of Kurdish security efforts is largely
due to an overreliance on targeting male Daesh leaders and operatives. Unlike
in 2014, when male fighters led the militant group’s seizing of territory in
Iraq, Syria, and beyond, today it is Daesh’s female supporters who are
expanding influence. Unless this shift is understood correctly, the group’s
ascendancy inside Al-Hol, and its re-emergence outside, is all but guaranteed.
Historically, the role of women in violent extremist
groups, and Daesg in particular, has been domestic and focused on supporting
husbands and children. Women have been used in terrorist operations or suicide
bombings if the religious authorities permit it. And Daesh has allowed women to
work, including as doctors, teachers, and religious police. But during its
height, the group urged most women to stick to roles inside the home.
Things changed dramatically after Daesh’s
territorial defeat in 2019. With male members either dead, detained, or on the
run, Daesh female supporters took it upon themselves to keep the group’s ideology
alive.
The creation of Al-Hol, which holds some 56,000
individuals from various nations, the vast majority of whom are women and
children, made their task easier. In addition to the high concentration of
like-minded people in one place, the absence of male supervision inside the
camp has allowed Daesh female supporters to take the lead and mirror Daesh
practices.
One of the most concerning developments in Al-Hol is
the indoctrination of children by pro-Daesh women. About 28,000 children inside
the camp are reportedly living without access to proper education. Benefiting
from this vacuum, Daesh female supporters have established makeshift schools to
inculcate young people with Daesh ideology.
These schools teach up to five levels. In addition
to Sharia courses, older children are provided ideological and military
training. Sadly, the camp residents’ home governments view the children as
threats, rather than victims, which explains the lack of effort to rescue them
from this ideological upbringing. Hence, analysts and officials fear that
Al-Hol is being used as a “breeding ground” for the next generation of Daesh.
During the group’s rise, women were largely excluded from propaganda produced by Daesh’s central media machine. In Al-Hol, they initiate their own online campaigns to promote Daesh ideology and disseminate its propaganda.
Women Daesh members have also formed “hesba”, a
religious police unit, to uphold Daesh ideology and impose its norms on other
women in the camp. This force has reportedly made women wear the veil and
attend informal Sharia courses. It also prohibits smoking, dancing, listening
to music, wearing pants, and talking to men.
Pro-Daesh women have even established their own
Sharia court, modeled on Daesh’s judicial system, to hold accountable those who
violate the group’s religious teachings. Punishments include flogging,
imprisonment, torture, food deprivation, burning of tents, and murder.
For now, the influence of Daesh’s women supporters
is primarily limited to the camp. During the group’s rise, women were largely
excluded from propaganda produced by Daesh’s central media machine. In Al-Hol,
they initiate their own online campaigns to promote Daesh ideology and
disseminate its propaganda.
But the women of Daesh have been able to launch
campaigns to collect donations from outside Al-Hol. This funding, which is
largely transferred through the informal hawala money transfer system, is used
to cover expenses and pay smugglers to help them escape. Eventually, these
revenue streams could fund activities beyond the camp’s perimeter fence.
Despite being aware of these practices, security
forces seem unable to act. That is partially a result of how new these
female-led structures are, which makes them difficult to detect.
Additionally, fear of reprisals and hard living
conditions inside the camp make residents less willing to cooperate with
authorities. As a result, recent security operations have been limited to
confiscating weapons and propaganda materials, disturbing Daesh’s networks, and
shutting down the infrastructure used by female Daesh supporters (such as
tunnels, trenches, schools, and Sharia centers).
Anti-Daesh security operations inside Al-Hol will
only reap results if the women-led structures promoting the group’s ideology
are properly identified and countered. Rehabilitating and reintegrating Daesh
supporters, inside and outside the camp, is essential for ensuring the group’s
enduring defeat. Without these actions, Al-Hol — and other camps like it — will
continue to play a key role in the continued existence of Daesh.
Haid Haid is a Syrian columnist and a
consulting associate fellow of Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa
program. Syndication Bureau.
Read more Opinion and Analysis
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
