Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Islamic State-linked detainees

Jan 23 (Reuters) – Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Friday it had taken over al-Aktan prison in the city of Raqqa in northeastern Syria, a facility that was formerly under the control of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The prison has been holding detainees linked to the militant group Islamic State, and witnessed clashes in its vicinity this week between advancing Syrian government forces and the SDF.

It was not immediately clear how many IS detainees remain in al-Aktan prison as the U.S. military has started transferring up to 7,000 prisoners linked to the militant Islamist group from Syrian jails to neighbouring Iraq. U.S. officials say the detainees are citizens of many countries, including in Europe.

“Specialized teams were formed from the counter-terrorism department and other relevant authorities to take over the tasks of guarding and securing the prison and controlling the security situation inside it”, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Under a sweeping integration deal agreed on Sunday, responsibility for prisons housing IS detainees was meant to be transferred to the Syrian government.

The SDF said on Monday it was battling Syrian government forces near al-Aktan and that the seizure of the prison by the government forces “could have serious security repercussions that threaten stability and pave the way for a return to chaos and terrorism”.

The U.S. transfer of IS prisoners follows the rapid collapse of Kurdish-led forces in northeast Syria. Concerns over prison security intensifed after the escape on Tuesday of roughly 200 low-level Islamic State fighters from Syria’s Shaddadi prison. Syrian government forces later recaptured many of them.

(Reporting by Ahmed ElimamEditing by Aidan Lewis and Gareth Jones)