The United States has successfully repatriated 11 of its citizens from the overcrowded camps in northeastern Syria that house family members of suspected Islamic State militants, as confirmed by the U.S. State Department on Tuesday. This repatriation marks the largest operation carried out by Washington from these camps to date, according to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Among the 11 citizens brought back, five were children, and an additional non-U.S. citizen child, the 9-year-old sibling of one of the other children, was also included in the repatriation. In a coordinated effort, the U.S. facilitated the return of 11 other camp residents, eight of whom were children, to Canada, the Netherlands, and Finland.
