Some European countries bear a share of responsibility for the situation of refugees in the al-Hawl camp, Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the Russian interagency coordination headquarters for the return of refugees to Syria and head of the Russian National Defense Management Center (NDMC), said.
"European countries are also responsible for the critical situation in the al-Hawl camp, as they do not take any decisive measures for the return of citizens who fought on the side of ISIS (former name of the IS terrorist group banned in Russia - TASS)," he noted.
According to the head of the NDMC, this is due to the fear of future difficulties in their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
Mizintsev stressed that Russia has set up work in accordance with the instructions of the Russian President on the return of Russian children from Syria, including those from the camps of internally displaced persons in the territories outside of the control of the Syrian authorities. "As of today, 215 children have already returned to their homeland," he added.
According to Mizintsev, unsatisfactory living conditions, an acute shortage of food and medicine in al-Hawl, as well as the lack of progress in resolving the issue of the return of camp residents to their places of permanent residence, provoke growing social tensions.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Creative Commons
Based on materials from TASS