European States’ Obligations to Repatriate the Children Detained in Camps in Northeast Syria response, numerous European and international resolutions have called for the repatriation of the children. For instance, the CoE Parliamentary Assembly Resolution on international obligations concerning the repatriation of children from war and conflict zones noted that “continued stays in camps or detention facilities cannot be considered to be in the best interest of the child” and called for the repatriation of children and their mothers from the camps.155 The European Parliament’s Resolution on children’s rights urged EU Member States to “repatriate all European children, taking into account their specific family situations and the best interests of the child as a primary consideration.”156 The Madrid Guiding Principles on “foreign terrorist fighters” required States to “fully respect and promote the rights of the child, taking into account the best interests of the child as a primary consideration,”157 and the Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict underlined that “denying children the opportunity to return to their countries of origin, rescinding their nationality or detaining them solely for their alleged association with armed groups runs counter to the best interests of the child and international protection standards.”158 The European States should proactively take the necessary legislative, administrative and other appropriate measures in order to bring to an end the current situation in which their child nationals in northeast Syria find themselves (including undetermined nationals and children of nationals whose nationality is not yet established in law). Current repatriation practices and their subsequent effects are contrary to children’s best interests (see also Section III.A. on the Right to Family Unity and the Need to Repatriate the Children Together with Their Primary Caregivers). The Principle of Non-Discrimination Widespread racist, Islamophobic, and xenophobic narratives in Europe, and the ever-expanding body of laws, policies, and practices that are justified on national security grounds, often serve as vehicles for both direct and indirect PACE, “Resolution 2321 (2020),” 30 January 2020, para. 4 and 8.1. European Parliament, “Resolution of 26 November 2019 on Children’s Rights on the Occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child,” 2019/2876(RSP), para. 61. 157 Annex to the letter dated 28 December 2018 from the Chair of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1373 (2001) concerning counter-terrorism addressed to the President of the Security Council, “2018 Addendum to the 2015 Madrid Guiding Principles,” para. 27 and Guiding Principle 7. 158 UNGA, “Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict,” A/73/278, 30 July 2018, para. 13. 155 156 29