Families of Islamic State fighters living in a refugee camp near Mosul said on Thursday they were unsure what their future held, as the brutal nine months of urban warfare between government forces and the militants comes to an end.
Wives, mothers and children of the fighters, many of whom were killed or imprisoned in the offensive, are living alongside other refugees in the Jadaa camp south of Mosul. They say they are taunted and treated poorly by their neighbors for being affiliated with the militants.
Many of the families said they would like to return to their villages, but local authorities in Mosul recently issued a decree to exile Islamic State families to camps so they can be rehabilitated ideologically. Rights groups say collective punishment undermines the prospects for reconciliation after Islamic State, and risks fostering a generation of outcasts with no stake in Iraq.
The Jadaa camp is home to around 18,000 people. More than 1 million people fled their homes in Mosul and nearby villages since the fighting started.
REUTERS
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