By Samah Abdul Fattah | 2024-11-25

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) recently concluded a major security operation at al-Hol camp, uncovering "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) cells and weapon caches, and thwarting planned attacks inside and outside the camp.

The seven-day "Operation Enduring Security," which kicked off November 6, involved 5,000 personnel from the SDF, Women's Protection Units (YPJ) and Asayesh (internal security forces), said SDF spokesman Farhad Khoja.

The security sweep was conducted with support from international coalition forces, he told Al Fassel.

Security forces spent five days inside the camp and two days in the surrounding area, he said, carrying out searches in 200 villages extending to the Iraqi border and making 96 arrests.

"Discovered were 35 Kalashnikov rifles -- the largest seizure ever made in such operations -- along with pistols, hand grenades, landmines, electronic devices, phones and ISIS propaganda material," Khoja said.

Investigators found that ISIS elements inside and outside the camp had been communicating with each other to coordinate attacks and escapes.

They also found numerous trenches and tunnels throughout the camp designed for hiding and facilitating escapes.

Khoja credited intelligence from international coalition forces and civilian tipoffs about suspicious activities for the operation's success.

"This contributed to finding the hideouts outside and inside the camp," he said, and is a strong sign of public support for security forces.

Women's role

The YPJ played a crucial role in the operation, which zeroed in on two ISIS-operated organizations: the hesba ("religious police") and the so-called "cubs of the caliphate," YPJ's Roshan Kobani told Al-Fassel.

"Given the sensitivity of the treatment of women in the camp, the search, sweep and arrest operations were the responsibility of women," she said.

"The operation resulted in the arrest of 17 women suspected of involvement in at least one murder, after a semi-decomposed body was found," she added.

The corpse, which was found in a section of the camp that houses foreign women who travelled to Syria to join ISIS, brought to light the extensive involvement of migrant women in camp violence, she said.

"A group of migrant women who participated in the intimidation, torture and killing operations inside the camp were arrested," Kobani said.

"It was proven they were involved in communicating with terrorists outside the camp to coordinate the transfer of funds and plan terrorist operations," she added.

Using established resident lists, fingerprints and eye scans, authorities conducted identity verification after discovering many residents were using false names.

Propaganda booklets seized during the sweep reveal the hesba's efforts to reconstitute the "cubs of the caliphate" as "a new nucleus for the group," she said.