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A28 world news
Diamars 1 september 2020
U.S. vetoes UN resolution over Islamic State fighters' return

By EDITH M. LEDERER nying children, including by
Associated Press facilitating the return of the
UNITED NATIONS (AP) children to their countries of
— The United States vetoed origin, as appropriate and on
a U.N. resolution Monday a case by case basis.”
calling for the prosecution, The Islamic State group,
rehabilitation and reintegra- which once controlled large
tion of all those engaged in swathes of Iraq and Syria, lost
terrorism-related activities, its last Syrian strongholds in
saying it didn’t call for the re- early 2019. But despite the
patriation from Syria and Iraq loss of its self-styled caliph-
of foreign fighters for the Is- ate, U.N. experts said earlier
lamic State extremist group this year that the extremist
and their families which is group is mounting increas-
“the crucial first step.” ingly bold attacks in Syria
U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft and Iraq and is planning for
said the resolution, “sup- the breakout of its fighters in
posedly designed to rein- detention facilities.
force international action on U.N. counter-terrorism
counter-terrorism, was worse chief Vladimir Voronkov said
than no resolution at all.” She in July that his office had re-
dismissed it as “a cynical and ceived information that 700
willfully oblivious farce.” people died recently in two
Because of the COVID-19 camps in northeast Syria —
pandemic, the 15-mem- U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft listens as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo al-Hol and Roj — where
ber Security Council voted speaks to reporters following a meeting with members of the U.N. Security Council, Thursday, more than 70,000 mainly
by email. The result was Aug. 20, 2020, at the United Nations. women and children con-
14 countries in favor and Associated Press nected to Islamic State fight-
only the U.S. opposed. It ers are detained in “very dire
was announced by the cur- cil were satisfied with a reso- who have opposed the re- tomary anonymity, said af- conditions.” The camps are
rent council president, In- lution that ignores the secu- turn of IS fighters and their ter the vote: “We regret the overseen by Kurdish-led
donesia’s U.N. Ambassador rity implications of leaving families, except in the case of resolution was not adopted. forces who allied with the
Dian Triansyah Djani, whose foreign terrorist fighters to orphans and some children. We are working closely with United States and spearhead-
country sponsored the reso- plot their escape from limited The British government says international partners to re- ed the fight against Islamic
lution. In her statement ex- detention facilities and aban- those who are in custody in duce the risk posed to us col- State fighters.
plaining the U.S. veto, Craft doning their family members Syria and Iraq should face lectively by foreign fighters.” The International Crisis
pointed to her comments at to suffer in camps without justice there rather than go- The defeated resolution did Group reported on April 7
a council meeting on coun- recourse, opportunities, or ing on trial in the U.K. support the return of chil- that there are 66,000 women
ter-terrorism last week. She hope,” she said on Monday. Craft said the U.S. brings its dren, but not fighters of fam- and children in al-Hol and
sstressed then that repatria- Craft said last week the citizens home and prosecutes ilies. It encouraged all coun- 4,000 in Roj, most of them
tion and accountability for Trump administration was them when appropriate. She tries to cooperate in address- relatives of IS extremists,
crimes by fighters for the Is- disappointed that Indonesian quoted U.S. Secretary of ing the threat from “foreign “but some former affiliates of
lamic State extremist group, efforts to draft “a meaningful State Mike Pompeo as say- terrorist fighters” or FTFs, the group themselves.” The
also known as ISIS, and their resolution ... were stymied by ing: “We want every country “including by bringing them Brussels-based think tank
family members are essential council members’ refusal to to take their citizens back. to justice, preventing the said that the majority are ei-
so they “do not become the include repatriation.” That’s step one. It’s impera- radicalization to terrorism ther Syrians or Iraqis, with
nucleus of an ISIS 2.0.” That was a reference to West- tive that they do so.” and recruitment of FTFs and the numbers roughly split,
“It is incomprehensible that ern Europeans, especially, in- A UK Foreign Office spokes- accompanying family mem- and around 13,500 are from
other members of this coun- cluding Britain and France, person, speaking with cus- bers, particularly accompa- other countries.q

Arrests made at Hong Kong protest a year after police clash

By ZEN SOO rest demonstrators at the between 16 and 60 years old
Associated Press station, where reporters and on a range of charges, includ-
HONG KONG (AP) — medics were refused entry ing unlawful assembly, disor-
Police in Hong Kong used after the clash. der in public places and as-
pepper spray and made sev- The semi-autonomous Chi- saulting police officers.
eral arrests as dozens of pro- nese city experienced months Among those detained was a
testers gathered Monday at a of protests last year after 17-year-old boy who claimed
subway station to mark the the government announced to be a reporter, according to
anniversary of a violent clash plans to pass an extradition a statement posted on Face-
last year that stirred accusa- bill that would have allowed book by Hong Kong police.
tions of police brutality dur- criminal suspects to be sent “Police reiterate that we have
ing anti-government rallies. to mainland China for trial. zero tolerance towards any
Some protesters came to Anger over the bill, seen as an illegal acts and we will take
Prince Edward subway sta- infringement on the former enforcement action accord-
tion in Kowloon with white British colony’s freedoms, ingly,” the statement said.
flowers, while others chanted sparked huge demonstrations An additional 37 people were
pro-democracy slogans and that at times descended into fined for violating social dis-
called for Hong Kong’s in- violence, and rallies contin- A boy is escorted by police officers to a police van after he tancing rules that ban public
dependence a year after video ued even after the bill was walked past the Prince Edward subway station where people gatherings of more than two
showed police using batons shelved. tried to place flowers outside and the boy have released soon people.
to beat people on a train. On Monday, police raised after, Monday, Aug. 31, 2020 in Hong Kong. The protest comes amid
Protesters have accused po- a flag, warning those at the Associated Press Hong Kong’s third and worst
lice of indiscriminately at- protest that they may be vio- outbreak of the coronavirus,
tacking passengers on Aug. lating the city’s national secu- sion and secession. disperse the crowds and ar- which has infected over 3,000
31, 2019, while trying to ar- rity law, which bans subver- They used pepper spray to rested at least 14 protesters since early July.q