Iraq holds 150 juvenile ISIS detainees in special facilities

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq has taken custody of 150 minors among ISIS detainees transferred from Syria, with authorities applying separate procedures to handle their cases, the Justice Ministry spokesperson told Shafaq News on Tuesday.

Ahmed Laibi explained that holding detainees under the age of 18 alongside adults in prison would be “inappropriate,” noting, “Dedicated halls and rooms have been allocated for them within the same correctional facilities, with measures designed to meet legal and humanitarian standards.”

Earlier this month, the National Center for International Judicial Cooperation, affiliated with Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council, reported that the country had received 5,704 ISIS suspects of 61 nationalities from prisons in Syria. The group includes 467 Iraqis, 4,253 Arab nationals, and 983 non-Arab foreign nationals. Syrians account for the largest share, with 3,543 detainees, alongside nationals from several European and other countries.

The transfers began in January under arrangements involving US Central Command during clashes between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). According to Shafaq News sources, Iraqi authorities are holding the detainees in high-security facilities.

Read more: ISIS detainee transfers test Iraq’s post-Coalition security