Six Canadian children are about to leave a detention center in Syria and board a plane bound for Canada. However, they are separated from their mother, who cannot come with them because federal officials have not completed the safety assessment for this Quebec woman, according to family attorneys.

The federal government has given the woman until Sunday to decide whether her six children will join other Canadians on the repatriation flight scheduled to depart each day or stay with her in Syria, said Alexandra Bain of Families Against Violent Extremism.

“I’m shocked. It doesn’t make sense, said Mr.^Me Bathing Saturday in an interview. I don’t expect Canada to act like that. »

These young Canadians are among many foreigners in Syrian camps run by Kurdish forces that have regained control of the region occupied by the Daesh group, also known as Islamic State.

The children, ages 3 to 16, have no family in Quebec, Ms. said^Me Bain, whose organization helps families whose loved ones are involved in violent extremist groups. At least two of the six children were born in Syria. There is a plan for Quebec Social Services to place the six children in three groups of two.

The mother, who does not know if and when she will be allowed to leave al-Roj camp in north-eastern Syria, worries about how to keep in touch with her children, according to Dr.^Me Bath.

“She does this for her children and is afraid of doing the wrong thing. »

Attorney Lawrence Greenspon, who is helping the family, says, “It’s a decision no parent should make.”

M^Me Bain and Mr. Greenspon asked that the woman’s name not be released due to the sensitivity of the case and privacy concerns.

The lawyer argued in federal court on behalf of several men, women and children detained in Syria that Global Affairs Canada must arrange their return as it violates the charter of rights and freedoms.

Mr. Greenspon reached an agreement with the federal government in January for the repatriation of six Canadian women and 13 children who participated in the lawsuit. All 19 are said to be on the upcoming repatriation flight from Syria.

breached obligations?

Separating a mother from her children violates Canada’s international obligations as well as the government’s policy on assessing possible repatriation cases, Greenspon said. “Their own political framework says they shouldn’t do that,” he said.

Global Affairs Canada did not immediately respond to questions about the case of this Quebec family.

M^Me Bain received a Nov. 24 letter from Global Affairs saying the woman and her six children meet the criteria for federal assistance to Canadians detained in the area, set out in the government’s January 2021 policy framework.

The letter reported threats against the woman and her children “given the dangerous security conditions in the camp.” He also cited reports of deteriorating health and living conditions, including possible cholera outbreaks and intermittent access to food and clean water.

M^Me Bain added that the woman was beaten and assaulted while in custody.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) recently held discussions with Canadian detainees in Syria as part of return procedures. Last Wednesday, the Quebec native spoke to RCMP officers, an experience she found bewildering and chilling. The next day, “they told her she couldn’t come back,” it said.

To see in the video