Voices of Despair: North Caucasus Women Urge Action Amid Unbearable Conditions in Kurdish-Run Camps

“There are around 2,000 childless women from Dagestan in the Al-Hawl and Roj camps, which are managed by Kurdish forces in Syria,” L., a Dagestani woman who was recently freed from Al-Hawl, shared. “There are also many families with children detained there. I can’t provide an exact figure, but the living conditions are completely intolerable,” she added, requesting anonymity for her safety.

Al-Hawl, located close to the Iraqi border, was initially set up to accommodate Iraqi refugees fleeing the Gulf War and, later, the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Presently, it is home to thousands of women and children, many of whom are related to Islamic State fighters, under Kurdish control.

“Women and children face torture and physical abuse from the Kurdish authorities,” L. stated. “We are held with no legal protections, in horrifying conditions. Some of us reside not just in tents but in converted latrines deemed ‘prison toilets.’ Even those who are healthy end up with heart issues and tuberculosis in such cells.”

L. is among many women who have been labeled as associated with the Islamic State (ISIS), the extremist group that captured large territories in Syria and Iraq in 2014 and declared a caliphate. Although ISIS still exists in some form, its self-proclaimed state collapsed in late 2019 after the battle of Baghuz Fawqani.

After ISIS’s defeat, the wives, sisters, and children of its fighters, many of whom are foreigners, were sent to camps controlled by Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria.

There are no accurate statistics on the number of women and children from Russia and its annexed territories in these camps, but many appear to originate from the North Caucasus. Families held in these facilities recount dire living conditions and express feelings of abandonment by the global community.

Some children have spent their entire lives in detention, either born in the camps or brought in as infants during the final confrontations with ISIS. Others were young preschoolers at the time and have little recollection of the group.

“For the past six years, children aged 12 and older have been removed from Al-Hawl and separated from their mothers, effectively imprisoned in facilities designed for teenagers,” L. explained. “The conditions they endure are dreadful. Just think of the trauma they’ve experienced being taken away from their mothers and siblings. Regardless of what a mother has done, she remains a mother. Children should not suffer because of their parents’ actions.”

According to L., mothers are frequently uninformed about the whereabouts of their sons. While some children have been returned to their families, she described these acts as “manipulative gestures” rather than signs of substantial change.

“In Roj, this specific practice doesn’t exist, but even there, Kurdish authorities are harsh on children, including toddlers, subjecting them to emotional and physical abuse. When media are present, they act kindly, but when the cameras leave, their true nature emerges,” she noted.

On social media platforms like Telegram and Facebook, women from the North Caucasus routinely organize fundraising efforts to gather warm clothing and blankets for their imprisoned sons or to pay bribes to Kurdish guards in hopes of securing their release.

“The Chechens have nearly secured the freedom of all their fellow citizens. There are significantly fewer Chechen families remaining in the camps,” said Ansar Dishni, a representative of NIYSO, a Chechen independence organization.

He stated that his group often receives requests for assistance in fundraising for someone’s release.

“There are numerous groups that pay bribes to extract women and children from the camps — if you can afford it,” added Ali Charinskiy, a spokesperson for the Independent Dagestan in Ukraine initiative. “It costs around $15,000 to secure someone’s release. I know this because I directly assisted in freeing one family from the camp.”

Charinskiy also criticized Russian authorities for steering disenchanted youth toward Syria in the early years of the conflict.

“Prior to 2014, authorities in the North Caucasus pressured young Muslims who might resist,” he elaborated. “The FSB allowed individuals to depart for Syria, taking no action to stop families from joining anti-Assad resistance or even terrorist factions. Their aim was to rid themselves of Muslim youth who might engage in Islamic solidarity or the Dagestani liberation movement. Then, Russia intervened in Syria to support Assad and bombed them.”

Dishni echoed this sentiment, linking youth radicalization to decades of Russian oppression.

“The primary factor was the harsh control and persecution from Russian authorities. This drove many young families to leave,” he remarked.

While Russia played a role in creating the dire circumstances that resulted in the camps, it has done little to address the crisis.

Within Russia, the challenges faced by ISIS-affiliated women and children are considered taboo, and even speaking about them can lead to criminal charges.

In July 2024, Russian theater director Zhenya Berkovich and playwright Svetlana Petriychuk were sentenced to six years in prison for “justifying terrorism” due to their play “Finist, the Brave Falcon,” which tells the story of Russian women lured to join ISIS in Syria. Although the play clearly condemns ISIS, its subject matter proved too politically sensitive.

Conversely, British author Nussaibah Younis’s 2025 satirical novel “Fundamentally,” about a London academic trying to rescue a former ISIS bride from a Syrian camp, became a bestseller and was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction.

In 2019, Azadeh Moaveni’s “Guest House for Young Widows,” a nonfiction account of 13 women associated with ISIS, was recognized as one of the year’s best books by The New York Times, The Toronto Star, and The Guardian.

Experts agree that early intervention is crucial for deradicalization. The earlier children are extracted from such camps, the better their future prospects. However, efforts to facilitate their return remain inconsistent.

While some women and children have been brought back to the North Caucasus, the process is slow and complex.

“We only know of a few isolated cases where women who returned voluntarily from the camps faced criminal charges,” said Dishni from NIYSO.

In general, in Chechnya and other regions, families of former ISIS members encounter minimal systematic prosecution, he noted. Although returnees are screened, these actions seldom lead to persecution.

Nonetheless, he cautioned that “in Russia, where the repressive apparatus acts beyond legal boundaries, no one is truly safe.” Even women returned to Chechnya may experience intimidation and harassment, he noted.

Charinskiy, from Independent Dagestan in Ukraine, recounted cases where Dagestani women returned to Dagestan were separated from their children and imprisoned.

“This is why many women are hesitant to return,” he said.

“Choosing whether to return or stay is a deeply personal decision,” expressed L., the Dagestani woman. “Everyone has their own plans and preferences. But at this moment, Syria seems like a safer option.”

Yet, many women express a desire to return home.

“There’s no universal solution,” noted Dishni. “Every case is unique. One must take into account broader factors — regional dynamics, international policies, and how returnees are treated.”

He added that, in some instances, reintegrating teenagers with extended families in the North Caucasus may offer the most compassionate and stable path forward.

“The family structure there is built on mutual assistance. If these kids are surrounded by their loved ones, they could find stability, care, and a way to reintegrate,” he said.

The political landscape in Syria is also changing. Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the new Salvation Government led by President Ahmed al-Sharah has discussed the possibility of releasing detainees from Kurdish camps and has reportedly opened negotiations with Kurdish forces — though tangible progress has yet to be achieved.

L. reported that conditions have deteriorated under the Kurdish authorities, who are now shirking responsibility.

“With the new authorities’ arrival, we hope for the establishment of more transparent and legal mechanisms to rescue the women and children trapped in these camps,” Dishni stated. “We anticipate that competent entities within the new Syrian government will create channels for their release and ensure their safety.”

“I’m convinced the new government is currently focused on other pressing matters, so the women and children from Roj and Al-Hawl are not their priority. The Kurds see them merely as bargaining chips,” Charinskiy remarked. “It’s unfortunate, but I hope that will change.”