France repatriates 51 women, children from Syria camps

France repatriated 35 children and 16 mothers from camps in Syria holding family members of suspected Islamic State fighters yesterday, in the largest such operation by Paris after pressure from campaigners.

"France has today undertaken the return to the country of 35 French minors who were in camps in northeast Syria. This operation also includes the return of 16 mothers from these same camps," a statement from the foreign ministry said.

It added that the minors were handed over to child protection services while the mothers would face judicial proceedings.

Families and campaigners have long sought to draw attention to the plight of around 200 French children in Kurdish-run camps in Syria after they were either brought to IS territory by their parents or born there during the years of fighting.

One of the biggest and most overcrowded camps is Al-Hol, where malnutrition and disease are rife and around two children die every week on average, according to a report by the Save the Children campaign group last September.

Until now, France had refused to repatriate people in large numbers, arguing that its security concerns were paramount after a series of attacks from IS jihadists, including the November 2015 assaults on Paris that left 130 people dead.

Many of the children are being held alongside their mothers or fathers who pose a potential risk, and France has insisted that French nationals face local justice.

Before Tuesday's operation, France had repatriated 126 children since 2016 under a policy that saw requests analysed on a slow-moving case-by-case basis.

The mass repatriations came after Germany and Belgium announced that they would bring back all of their minors in camps.