Statement in response to the Secretary of State for Defence’s comments on the repatriation of British children in North East Syria

Save the Children, 6th May

LONDON — Save the Children welcomes comments from the Secretary of State for Defence yesterday that the United Kingdom has an obligation to “take back” British children who are currently living in desperate conditions in displacement camps in North East Syria.

George Graham, Director of Conflict and Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy and Campaigns at Save the Children UK, said:

“These children have lived through conflict, bombardment and acute deprivation and continue to face severe challenges in overcrowded and chaotic displacement camps inside a war zone. Many of them have no official documentation, and their births have not been registered, leaving them at greater risk of statelessness and denial of their basic rights and services.

“Save the Children is calling on the UK Government and other countries of origin to prioritise the protection of children living in conflict and to urgently repatriate foreign children trapped in displacement camps in North East Syria. These children need specialised help to recover from their experiences and return to normality, and we call on the UK Government and other countries of origin to provide the rehabilitative support that these children and their families will need upon their return.”