Syria POW prison attacked

This item appears on page 5 of the March 2022 issue.

A prison in Hasaka, northeastern Syria, holding former members of the Islamist militant group Daesh (ISIL), including 850 children, some as young as 12, was attacked by at least 300 Daesh militants on Jan. 20 in an attempt to release prisoners.

After storming the prison, the fighters were trapped inside by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-led group that is in charge of security in the city. According to the SDF, more than 150 militants were killed before the Daesh fighters surrendered on Jan. 24. At least 45 SDF members and seven civilians also were reportedly killed. It’s not known how many prisoners were killed.