European States’ Obligations to Repatriate the Children Detained in Camps in Northeast Syria violated,63 or engaging in combat operations. 64 Regardless of their motivations and roles within ISIS, numerous women have been subjected to egregious human rights abuses, including sexual violence, trafficking, and forced marriage.65 Significantly, a high proportion of women in the camps either never committed to ISIS or are no longer committed. 66 Only a minority of women in the camps remains hardline supporters of ISIS.67 Among them, some have no desire to be repatriated 68 and some have replicated ISIS structures, such as the religious police,69 continued to enforce the ISIS-imposed dress code, and used verbal and physical violence against people not abiding by their rules.70 Many women in the camps condemn the harsh and inhumane conditions of their detention and express their willingness to return to their countries of origin, to bring their children home to safety, and, if necessary, to face justice.71 Some have formally given up custody of their children, signing away their parental rights in order to offer their children a chance of a better 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 15 Loulla-Mae Eleftheriou-Smith, “Escaped Isis Wives Describe Life in the All-female al-KhansaBrigade who Punish Women with 40 Lashes for Wearing Wrong Clothes,” The Independent, 20 April 2015. However the brigades functioned under a predominantly male leadership structure, see: Asaad H. Almohammad and Anne Speckhard, “The Operational Ranks and Roles of Female ISIS Operatives: From Assassins and Morality Police to Spies and Suicide Bombers,” International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism, 2017, p. 10. For example, New Straits Times, “Female Suicide Bomber Kills 31 in Busy Iraqi Market”, 10 June 2017; ICG, “Women and Children First: Repatriating the Westerners Affiliated with ISIS”, 2019, p. 6. Luisa Dietrich and Simone E. Carter, “Gender and Conflict Analysis in ISIS Affected Communities of Iraq”, Oxfam, 2017, p. 9; HRW, “Iraq: ISIS Escapees Describe Systematic Rape”, 14 April 2015. see: Reprieve, “Trafficked to Syria: British Families Detained in Syria after Being Trafficked to Islamic State,” April 2021, pp. 11-12. RSI, “Europe’s Guantanamo: The Indefinite Detention of European Women and Children in North East Syria,” 2020, para. 95; Voa News, “In Camp of Diehard IS Supporters, Some Women Express Regrets”, 23 April 2019. Center for Global Policy, “The Children of ISIS Detainees: Europe’s Dilemma”, 2020, p. 11. Anne Speckhard and Ardian Shajkovci, “Waiting for Return of the Caliphate Among ISIS Enforcers in Syria’s al Hol, Ain Issa and Roj Camps”, Homeland Security Today, 3 September 2019. Center for Global Policy, “The Children of ISIS Detainees: Europe’s Dilemma”, 2020, p. 11. Natalia Sancha,”ISIS Women Impose their Own Caliphate in Syria’s Al Hol Camp”, El Pais, 25 October 2019; Jessica Davis, “The Future of The Islamic State’s Women: Assessing their Potential Threat,” pp. 46; Anne Speckhard and Ardian Shajkovci, “Waiting for Return of the Caliphate Among ISIS Enforcers in Syria’s al Hol, Ain Issa and Roj Camps”, Homeland Security Today, 3 September 2019; Reuters, “Indonesia Says Probing Report of Death of Pregnant Woman in Syrian camp”, 1 August 2019. Anne Speckhard and Ardian Shajkovci, “Waiting for Return of the Caliphate Among ISIS Enforcers in Syria’s al Hol, Ain Issa and Roj Camps”, 2019. Ibid.