ISIS militants kept by Syrian Kurds to stand local trial: Assad
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said that ISIS militants kept in SDF facilities will be tried in Syria in courts "specialized in terrorism." "Every terrorist in the areas controlled by the Syrian state will be subject to Syrian law, and Syrian law is clear concerning terrorism," he told Paris Match.
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ISIS militants kept by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) will be tried in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad has said, adding that for Damascus "terrorists are terrorists" regardless of their nationalities.
"Every terrorist in the areas controlled by the Syrian state will be subject to Syrian law, and Syrian law is clear concerning terrorism. We have courts specialized in terrorism and they will be prosecuted," Assad told Paris Match on Nov. 27, upon a question regarding the jihadists in SDF facilities.
"Regardless of nationalities, this is a matter for the competent authorities who have the statistics. But in any case, if there are jihadists, they are subject to Syrian laws," he added.
When asked about Turkey's stance on repatriating foreign ISIS militants to their home countries, Assad said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan "is trying to blackmail Europe."
"There are institutions and there are laws. Extraditing terrorists or any convicted person to another state is subject to bilateral agreements between countries; but to release people from prison knowing that they are terrorists and sending them to other countries to kill civilians – this is an immoral act," the Syrian President said.
During the interview, Assad said that over a million Syrians in less than a year returned to Syria.
"And the process is accelerating, particularly after Damascus and the southern region and its environs were liberated," he added.