Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announced on Saturday that ten children of jihadist fighters and six mothers have been returned to Belgium from the al-Roj camp in northeastern Syria. De Croo's office stated in a release, "On Friday night, a plane landed in Belgium carrying six women and ten Belgian children under 12 years old coming from Syria."
The statement added, "The six women were taken to prison. The children were placed under the care of the youth department, which has taken the necessary measures under the Minor Protection Law." The youth protection services are expected to care for these children after conducting medical examinations.
Unofficial sources and several media outlets reported on Friday that this return operation is the largest organized by Belgian authorities since the fall of the Islamic State in 2019. The Prime Minister confirmed in the statement that "the priority has always been the safety of the children."
On March 4, following the counter-terrorism agencies' green light, De Croo promised to do "everything" to return children under 12 years old. He emphasized the necessity to consider the children's "well-being" amid the deteriorating humanitarian and security situation in the Kurdish-run camps in northeastern Syria.
De Croo had previously stated that this issue is also a security matter for Belgium. The Belgian OCAD, responsible for analyzing the terrorist threat, determined that the children and mothers living in these camps require "constant monitoring," which can be ensured "much more easily" on Belgian soil.
Heidi De Pauw from the "Child Focus" association praised the "courage" of the Belgian government and expressed her happiness that these children were able to "escape the dangers in these war-torn areas." Belgium, alongside France, is among the European countries that witnessed the largest number of citizens leaving to join foreign fighters since the outbreak of the conflict in Syria in 2011. Since 2012, over 400 Belgians have traveled to Syria to fight alongside jihadist groups. Early this year, Belgian researchers estimated that around 40 minors remain in Syria.
