According to data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan, some 500 Tajik nationals are currently being held in refugee camps in Syria.  Tajik authorities intend to bring back home all Tajik nationals stranded in Syrian refugee camps. 

“Tajikistan intends to bring back home all its citizens stranded in refugee camps in Syria,” Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin told reporters in Dushanbe on February 18.  

“According to our data, some 500 Tajik nationals are being held in Syrian refugee camps.  According to information provided by international organizations, 212 Tajik women and children held in refugee camps in Syria want to return home.  We are taking all necessary measures to determine the exact number of Tajik nationals stranded in Syria and negotiations are under way,” the minister said.

According to him, negotiations are being conducted with the Government of Syria, representatives of Syrian democratic forces, under whose control the camps are placed, where militants and accomplices of the ISIS terror group are being held. 

“Out ambassador to Kuwait, who is also concurrently Ambassador to Syria, has conducted negotiations with the Syrian side on behalf of the Government of Tajikistan.  We also cooperate with UNICEF and ICRC, who also expressed readiness to provide assistance with repatriation and rehabilitation of our nationals” Muhriddin noted.  

Asked about opening of a temporary diplomatic mission of Tajikistan in Syria the minister said that that issues was under consideration.  

Recall, 84 children whose Tajik mothers are imprisoned in Iraq under charges of belonging to the IS terror group were brought home on April 30.  The children were reportedly carried to Tajikistan by plane of Iraqi air carrier Fly Erbil. 

Returning children underwent medical check-ups and received necessary medical treatments and vaccinations soon after their arrival.  Trained psychologists and teachers reportedly worked with children

To help them adapt to their new life in Tajikistan.  

According to data from the State Committee for National Security (SCNS) of Tajikistan, some 1,900 people from Tajikistan have left for Iraq and Syria since 2014 to join the ISIS terror group.  More than 1,700 of them have reportedly been put on the international wanted list.  Some 500 Tajiks were reportedly killed in armed conflicts in Middle East and more than 700 others were detained.  

More than 100 people in total, including families with children, have reportedly returned from the conflict zone -- both before and after the amnesty offered in 2015.

Some were convicted of being mercenaries or recruiting for foreign terrorist organizations.  Most however, have reportedly reintegrated into society under the watchful eyes of authorities, including security services and neighborhood committees.

In a 21-page reported released on September 21, 2019, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria noted that up to 70,000 individuals remain interned in deplorable and inhumane conditions at Al-Hol camp, the vast majority of whom are women and children under the age of 12.  The report described the situation at the Al-Hol camp as “appalling,” and expressed concerns that most of the 3,500 children held there lack documents and are at risk of being left stateless.

Commission representative Paulo Pinheiro noted many UN member states were unwilling to repatriate the children, particularly those aged of 12 to 18, due to fears that they might have links to extremism.