BAGHDAD (Dispatches) – Iraq have repatriated 64 children born to Uzbek families affiliated with the Daesh terrorist group, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry says.
A ministry statement said the repatriation was carried out through the cooperation between the Iraqi authorities, UNICEF and an international organization.
So far, the Iraqi authorities have sent 537 children from Daesh-affiliated families of various nationalities to their home nations, the statement added.
The ministry calls upon all states to intensify efforts to receive their nationals who are children staying with their mothers in Iraqi rehabilitation services, as well as those whose sentences have expired.
Thousands of foreign fighters joined Daesh which established a self-proclaimed caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria in 2014. The terrorist group lost its urban areas in Iraq in 2017, and in eastern Syria earlier this year.
Meanwhile, France’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that he will hold talks soon with Iraqi and Kurdish leaders to discuss how to secure thousands of foreign and regional Daesh terrorists held in Syrian camps and prisons.
"They can act quickly if these camps were not sufficiently guarded ...I will very quickly meet Iraqi leaders, including Kurdish leaders, to ensure this vital necessity,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told French members of parliament.