ISIS fighters reportedly escape from Kurdish prisons amid fighting with government

A number of ISIS prisoners escaped from prisons operated by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces amid fighting with Syria’s largest city of Damascus.

The fate of over 50,000 ISIS prisoners, held in prison camps in northeastern Syria, has been of paramount concern to the United States since the collapse of the caliphate in 2018. These concerns increased after the fall of the Assad authoritarian dynasty, with fears growing that any transfer could facilitate their escape. These fears were vindicated after government forces launched an offensive against SDF territory over the past week, as reports emerged of ISIS fighters taking advantage of the chaos to break free.

A Syrian government fighter stands guard outside Al-Aqtan prison on the outskirts of Raqqa, northeastern Syria, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026,