Around 38,000 foreign nationals - more than 60 per cent of whom are children - are being held in Al-Hol and Roj, two closed, sprawling camps in north-eastern Syria that have been holding mostly spouses, other adult female relatives and children of male IS suspects since 2019.
Most of the children are under 14 years old and many have spent most, if not all, of their lives in the camps. Some countries, including Finland, Sweden, Russia, Germany and the USA, have allowed the repatriation of IS children. But France has taken a different position, refusing to repatriate the children, unless they are orphaned. In France, their families are waging a fierce battle against the government to bring these children home.