Baghdad's Supreme Judicial Council said it will prosecute Islamic State members being transferred from Syrian detention facilities to Iraq under a U.S.-brokered plan. The move follows Syrian government advances that displaced Kurdish-led forces who had guarded camps such as al-Hol, raising fears of escapes and reactivated IS cells. The U.S. military has begun airlifting detainees — 125 were moved Sunday and 275 have arrived in Iraq so far — and Iraqi authorities say suspects will face investigation and trial in domestic courts.
Iraq to Prosecute IS Militants Airlifted From Syria Under U.S.-Brokered Transfer
An aerial view shows Shaddadeh prison complex in the town of Shaddadeh, northeastern Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, a day after Syria's Interior Ministry said Islamic State group members escaped from the facility during clashes with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Baghdad announced Sunday that it will prosecute members of the Islamic State (IS) who are being transferred from prisons and detention camps in neighboring Syria to Iraq under a U.S.-brokered arrangement, the country's Supreme Judicial Council said.
Why Transfers Are Underway
The announcement followed a meeting of senior security and political officials reviewing the relocation of roughly 9,000 IS detainees held in Syria since the group's collapse there in 2019. Transfers became necessary after Syrian government forces last month dislodged Kurdish-led fighters — once key U.S. partners against IS — from large parts of northeastern Syria, including sites where camps and prisons were guarded for years.
Camp and Prison Seizures Raise Alarm
Syrian troops captured the sprawling al-Hol camp, which shelters thousands and is largely populated by families of IS members, after Kurdish-led forces withdrew under a ceasefire. Forces also took control of a prison in the northeastern town of Shaddadeh; Syrian state media reported that some detainees escaped during clashes but that many were later recaptured. The clashes raised fears that IS sleeper cells could be activated and that detainees might flee across the Syria-Iraq border.
Transfer Operation And Legal Process
The U.S. military began the transfer operation on Friday. Iraqi officials said another 125 detainees were flown into Iraq on Sunday; authorities report that 275 prisoners have reached Iraq so far. Officials cautioned the process has been slow because U.S. forces are transporting detainees by air.
Men sit inside a holding room at a prison in the town of Shaddadeh, northeastern Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, after Syrian authorities said they were among Islamic State group members who escaped from the facility a day earlier and were later detained by Syrian government forces. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Once in Iraq, suspects accused of terrorism will be investigated by Iraqi security services and tried in domestic courts, the Supreme Judicial Council said. Both Damascus and Washington have publicly welcomed Baghdad’s offer to receive the prisoners.
Political And Security Response
Iraq’s parliament planned to meet Sunday to discuss developments in Syria and Baghdad’s plans to bolster its presence along the border. The truce between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has largely held after being recently extended; Syria’s Defense Ministry said the ceasefire was prolonged to assist the ongoing transfer operation conducted by U.S. forces.
Background
The Islamic State was militarily defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria by 2019, but sleeper cells continue to carry out deadly attacks in both countries. During campaigns against IS, thousands of fighters and tens of thousands of women and children linked to them were detained in prisons and camps such as al-Hol, which still hosts many civilians. Last year, U.S. troops and SDF partners detained more than 300 IS fighters and killed over 20 militants in operations; in December, an IS ambush in Syria killed two U.S. soldiers and an American civilian interpreter.
Chehayeb reported from Beirut.
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