Canadian woman who escaped from Syrian camp dies in Turkish detention centre
A Canadian woman has died in a detention centre in Turkey after apparently escaping from a camp in northeastern Syria from where she had been refused repatriation by her own government.
The 40-year-old, known by the initials FJ, was the mother of six children who were returned to Canada earlier this year from al-Roj camp where many families suspected of links to the Islamic State group (IS) remain detained.
According to lawyers and campaigners, Canadian officials last year refused to repatriate her from the Kurdish-controlled camp along with other Canadian women and children on the grounds that she was deemed a security risk.
In comments on Friday, her lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon, described that as “patently false”, citing strict conditions imposed on other women who had returned from Syria.
In a letter to Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, Kim Pate, a senator who was part of a delegation who met FJ and other Canadian nationals still detained in Syria last year, called for an independent investigation into her death.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
“This is, clearly a very tragic outcome, both with respect to FJ’s death and the grave impact that will no doubt have on her children,” the letter said.
“All of that is compounded by the fact that Canada’s refusal to take reasonable steps to maintain this family’s unity… effectively led to this chain of events, including family separation, FJ’s subsequent imprisonment and death in Turkey.”
The letter was co-signed by human rights lawyers Alex Neve and Hadayt Nazami, who were also members of the delegation that travelled to Syria.
The Canadian government has previously been accused of “unyielding cruelty” for making repatriation arrangements for children which forced mothers who were not also deemed eligible to choose between keeping their children with them or sending them to Canada.
According to the letter, seen by Middle East Eye, FJ is believed to have escaped from al-Roj, leaving her children behind, and crossed into Turkey in March.
Her six children were then repatriated to Canada in May.
FJ was detained by Turkish authorities in June on suspicion of being a member of a terrorist group and sent to a women’s prison.
She was acquitted on 15 October and sent to an immigration detention centre to await deportation. It was here she was found dead on 17 October.
The letter noted that FJ had received at least two consular visits while in prison and may have also been visited by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers.
It called for an independent autopsy to be carried out to confirm the cause of her death.
MEE contacted Turkish authorities for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.
A Global Affairs Canada spokesperson told MEE: "Canada is aware of reports of the death of a Canadian woman in Türkiye. We cannot share any further information at this time due to privacy considerations."
Tens of thousands of people, many of them foreign nationals, remain detained in northeastern Syria five years after the defeat of IS by Kurdish-led forces backed by an international coalition.
In May, the United Nations Human Rights Council heard that more than 55,000 people, including almost 30,000 children, remain unlawfully detained in camps and prisons in the region.
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
