Iraq pushes back on ISIS transfers, urges EU burden-sharing

Shafaq News– Baghdad

Iraq will not shoulder the security and financial costs of receiving thousands of ISIS detainees transferred from Syria alone, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said on Saturday, as the first group of prisoners entered Iraqi custody.

According to a statement from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, Hussein told European Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas during a phone call that responsibility for the detainees must be shared among all countries involved, particularly those whose nationals are among the prisoners.

The transfers follow a US-led operation launched this week by United States Central Command (CENTCOM), which began relocating ISIS detainees from Syria to Iraqi facilities. The first batch included 150 prisoners, with up to 7,000 expected to be moved in stages.

The move comes amid mounting concerns over prison security in northeastern Syria after renewed clashes between Syrian government forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which have strained detention sites holding ISIS members.

Transfers accelerated after shifts in territorial control, as the SDF handed over several detention facilities to government forces under a political arrangement, raising fears about the stability of prisons previously secured by the group.

Hussein urged Europe to take a more active role in supporting talks between Damascus and the SDF to stabilize detention sites and prevent further escapes or unrest, the statement said.

Read more: Exclusive: Iraq takes custody of “first-line” ISIS, Al-Qaeda leaders from Syria