Russia ready to repatriate ISIS-linked detainees held in Iraq

Shafaq News- Moscow/ Baghdad

Russian authorities are ready to repatriate their nationals accused of terrorism and currently detained in Iraqi prisons once their citizenship is confirmed, Russian Deputy Interior Minister Igor Nikolaevich Zubov noted on Wednesday.

In a statement, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said Iraqi Ambassador to Moscow Abdul Karim Hashem Mostafa met with Zubov to discuss the issue, adding that the ambassador conveyed Baghdad’s call for the Russian government to retrieve its citizens affiliated with ISIS who are being held in Iraq. The ministry stated that Iraq is moving toward returning foreign detainees to their home countries as part of efforts to preserve sustainable regional and international security and stability.

Iraq received between 5,000 and 7,000 ISIS detainees from Syria in an operation coordinated with the United States after the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) withdrew and closed detention camps that had held suspected members of the group for nearly a decade. Morocco, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, and Egypt are among the countries that have shown readiness to cooperate in repatriating their nationals.