Britain ‘at risk of attack from returning Islamic State militants’

Dr Burcu Ozcelik, a Middle East security analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, said it was significant that the Syrian president had joined the global coalition to counter IS. She described it as “an almost existential test” for his government which risks a backlash from regional allies if it fails to contain IS. “The problem is that the handover is happening under extreme pressure and uncertainty rather than through a stable and planned transfer,” she said, describing the current transition as “the most dangerous phase”. Dr Ozcelik noted that the SDF had considerable experience running the camps and had “a strong intelligence presence and network focused on countering IS influence inside al-Hol”.