UN-backed return: Over 240 families home from Syrian camp

Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, Iraq repatriated more than 240 families from Syria’s al-Hol camp as part of a UN-backed agreement, a lawmaker said.

Hussein al-Ameri, a member of parliament’s Security and Defense Committee, told Shafaq New that the returns follow a “long-standing” arrangement that permits groups of 50 people at a time to return for psychological and social rehabilitation.

The families, previously housed in the al-Hol and al-Hasakah camps in northeastern Syria, crossed into Nineveh province aboard 20 Iraqi buses via the al-Yarubiyah border crossing, according to security and humanitarian officials.

“This is the 25th convoy since returns began and the eighth so far in 2025,” Shukri al-Hajji, head of al-Hol’s exit office, told Shafaq News.

The convoy was accompanied by US armored vehicles under Global Coalition coordination to ensure safe passage, officials said.

Returnees are currently housed at al-Jadaa camp south of Mosul, where they undergo reintegration supported by Iraqi authorities and UN agencies. Future relocation to their original home areas depends on clearance by national security and intelligence services, al-Ameri said.

On Tuesday, over 240 families of 860 individuals were also returned as part of the same agreement.

Iraq launched the repatriation program in 2021 with international backing. However, it continues to face local opposition, particularly in Nineveh, where families of ISIS victims have raised concerns about the return of former camp residents.