Maldives repatriates 21 stranded in Syria
They have been taken to the National Reintegration Centre in Himmafushi after an assessment of their health condition.
By
Aishath Fareeha Abdulla
Twenty-one people from five families who went to Syria to fight in their civil war have been brought back to Maldives, government announced Tuesday.
They were brought to Maldives via Türkiye on a flight chartered by the Maldivian government.
Homeland security minister Ali Ihsan said at a press conference at Iskandhar Koshi that five Maldivian families were stranded in the border region between Syria and Turkey.
Speaking for the first time about the operation to bring them back to Maldives, Ihsan said that as soon as the government received the information, they started trying to ascertain whether they were Maldivians. He said:
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Police and the National Reintegration Centre in K. Himmafushi started the work
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Police have visited the region on several occasions and met with the families to conduct an assessment
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DNA tests were also conducted to confirm whether they were Maldivians
They were confirmed around the same time as the new government took office in November. During his official visit to Türkiye, President Mohamed Muizzu initiated talks with the Turkish government to bring them back, Ihsan said.
“We have raised the necessary funds and a special flight was sent on January 14 from Male with a team of 15 people to Gaziantep Oğuzeli International Airport in Türkiye to bring these people,” he said.
The team includes, according to Ihsan:
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Health experts
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Security personnel
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Psychiatrists
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Intelligence and investigation police officers
"The flight landed at Velana International Airport at 5:02am on Tuesday," Ihsan said.
According to the minister, among the 21 people brought in on Tuesday:
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They belong to five families
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They include 15 children and six adults
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5 of them are women
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All the children brought in were the children of these 5 women
They have been taken to the National Reintegration Centre in Himmafushi after an assessment of their health condition, Ihsan said. According to him:
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The reintegration centre has previously rehabilitated a family brought from a war zone
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They were brought to Maldives on 21 March 2022; they are now living normal life in society
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There are relevantly trained people working at the centre
Ihsan said the 21 people brought from Syria are in good condition. They will then undergo special assessments to better determine their status, he said.
"Each person will be assessed individually. After identifying the situation, our professionals will decide what kind of rehabilitation programme will be conducted for that person," Ihsan said.
Assessments will be conducted at various points in the programme and once it is confirmed that they are fit to live in the general society, they will be released, he said. He added:
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It took a year and a month to reintegrate the previous family back into society
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Depending on their circumstances, this period may extend
More than 100 Maldivians are estimated to have gone to fight in Syria. More than 70 of them have been killed in the war.
