Six children of ex-IS fighters who returned from Syria are expected in Montreal

They experienced unspeakable situations. Six children, ages 5 to 12, who were held for several years in a camp in Syria where some former Islamic State (IS) fighters and their families are imprisoned, will soon be returned to Canada without their Quebecois mother. They are cared for by the Director of Youth Protection (DYP) and the RCMP in partnership with Montreal's Polarization Clinic, which supports people affected by radicalization.

“It's a shame that these children are coming back so late, but they should be welcomed,” said Cécile Rousseau, a child psychiatrist and director of the Polarization Clinic at the CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l'Île. – From Montreal.

After the fall of the Syrian city of Baghouz in March 2019, the last stronghold of the IS group – also known as ISIS – very close to the Iraqi border, several surviving jihadists and their families were among those captured in Al. – Roj and Al-Hol camps under the control of the Kurds. At the same time, a protocol was drawn up between the DPJ, the RCMP, and the Polarization Clinic, which was prepared to welcome Canadian women and children back to Canada under increasing pressure in Montreal.

“At that time, we learned that the majority of Canadians with ties to ISIS were women and children. And it was a whole process of questioning what would be optimal for accepting the returnees,” explained M.ⁱ Rousseau. “We had two goals: the best interests of the child and optimal social reintegration, which is aimed at both the well-being of returning subjects and the safety of Canadians. »

Since 2020, some thirty Canadians — many of them children — held in these camps in northeastern Syria have returned to Montreal, a return that has sometimes been publicized and sometimes slipped under the radar.

Overcrowded and unsanitary, this detention facility, like many others, has seen children die of malnutrition and dehydration, according to a Canadian federal court ruling. In al-Roj, children out of school and deprived of health care suffer from respiratory diseases caused by emissions from nearby oil fields.

Apart from his mother

The Quebec mother of six, who has not been identified, finally decided to let her children go. The Canadian government is refusing to allow him to return to the country because he poses a threat to national security, explained his lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon. Last year, she was faced with an “impossible choice,” she said: let her children return to Canada without her, or leave them in the Al Roj camp.

“They did not allow the mother to return to her country unless she was with her children. But recently he left the camp and gave me a task to agree to return his children to the country without him,” explained M.^e Greenspon helped bring back about 30 women and children. “Unfortunately, the government's position (sur le rapatriement de la mère) has not changed. »

According to child psychiatrist Cecil Rousseau, the separation of a minor child from its parents is a “great risk factor” that harms integration. “The most important thing for a child is brotherhood. The literature tells us that children, like orphans, are more vulnerable to instability, he says. The main problem will be the restoration of parental figures. »

The mother's decision to lose her children must have been more difficult because she would have been severely disabled, her lawyer confirmed. Duty, and he needs the help of his children to get around. He had no relatives in Canada, and the fact that he would give his offspring to foster care would tear him apart.

Children can be placed with different families chosen by the DPJ who “respect their beliefs”. “But others rebel, and we have to let them be real teenagers playing basketball and doing other things,” said M.ⁱ Rousseau.

In addition to psychological monitoring of children through art therapy or games, the Polarization Clinic supports schools, in particular equipping staff to better support them. “You have to understand where they're coming from, how to explain certain behaviors, inhibitions, fears. Some children have never seen a car or almost never had electricity or a bathroom. The shock is huge! »

Not a terrorist

Mⁱ Rousseau believes that the returned children are not terrorists, they should be protected. “They were in a difficult situation, they had parents who chose to leave (combattre en Syrie),” he says. There is a right to rehabilitation for any Canadian who breaks the law. “(Parents) have the right to a second chance. »

Two of the four women who returned to Canada with their children in the spring of 2023 were arrested upon arrival, but released on certain conditions, including not breaking the public order.

Cecil Rousseau understands the fear surrounding these returns. But experience has shown that reintegrating these children into Quebec society works. “In 2019, we were in a state of uncertainty, but now we can tell you, yes, it works. Yes, we can reintegrate these children and their mothers into society so that they can become valuable citizens again and have great potential. »

Despite the small number of people, the clinical results show that the model has proven itself, he insists. “We don't want to replace all services, but the idea (la clinique) from the beginning is to simplify and maximize the possibility of integration,” continues M.ⁱ Rousseau. Because it is much more difficult to repair. »

Global Affairs Canada did not respond to questions about the care of the children and the reasons for not repatriating their mother. Duty for privacy reasons.

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