A rare look inside Syria’s ISIS prison as jailbreak attempts surge after fall of Assad regime

The 4,500 detainees of 46 nationalities are a 'ticking bomb', Kurdish-led authorities tell The National

Inmates accused of links to ISIS at the Syrian Democratic Forces-run Panorama Prison, in Hassakeh, north-eastern Syria. AP

The inmates of north-east Syria's Panorama Prison for alleged ISIS fighters have had no contact with the outside world for years. For the 4,500 detainees of 46 nationalities, locked in austere cells from which the smell of bodies confined for too long seeps into the corridor, time has frozen since their capture in the final battle against the militant group in 2019.

In each cell, around 20 men of all ages sit in silence on thin mattresses, awaiting a trial that might never happen – or a rare visit from a journalist. A deadly fate awaits some due to a rampant tuberculosis epidemic that has already killed several in recent outbreaks, according to the prison administration.

The facility in the city of Hassakeh is part of a network of prisons holding ISIS members, including 9,000 detainees in prisons and tens of thousands of ISIS-linked families in closed camps managed by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed alliance led by Syrian Kurdish fighters that runs a semi-autonomous region in the north-east of the country.

These ISIS prisoners – described as a “ticking bomb” by the Kurdish-led administration – have long been forgotten by the international community. Few countries have taken the initiative to repatriate their citizens and launch judicial proceedings against them.

A cell in Panorama Prison in north-east Syria, containing men accused of involvement with ISIS. Getty Images

The National was granted rare access to Panorama Prison a few days after SDF security forces foiled an attack by ISIS sleeper cells – one of many recent attempts to free their fellow fighters. SDF officials say such incidents have surged since the ousting of former Syrian president Bashar Al Assad in a lightning offensive led by the Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) group in December.

Kurdish officials told The National that since the collapse of the Assad regime after more than 50 years, ISIS prisons have been facing pressing security challenges, as remnants of the militant group use political and security turmoil to mobilise.

“ISIS is trying to take advantage of the security vacuum to launch attacks,” Rukan Jamal, head of media for the People's Defence Units (YPG) – the most powerful group within the SDF, told The National.

Turkey, along with Turkish-backed groups – long-time enemies of the YPG – launched a campaign in northern Syria in December, coinciding with the offensive that toppled the Assad regime.

Ms Jamal said that, because of the continuing conflict, SDF fighters had to divert their focus away from ISIS-related threats to the Turkish front – a shift that has been exploited by ISIS groups.

“The attacks have drastically surged, with five attempts against the Panorama Prison since the fall of the regime, all of which we were able to foil,” she said.

“These attacks are not just directed at the prisons but also the camps – it’s a way for ISIS to show power and let detainees know that they are still mobilised.”

In 2022, a brazen ISIS attack on the Panorama Prison led to 10 days of bloody fighting in Hassakeh, forcing the intervention of US and British forces, before the SDF regained control of the facility.

“It will be chaos if the detainees are let out, in Syria and all over the world,” she said.

'The most dangerous fighters'

British citizen Ibrahim Ageed, who travelled to Syria a decade ago, in Panorama Prison. Getty

During the visit, The National interviewed two detainees through a small window in the heavy cell doors, in the presence of prison administrators. Masked guards led the way through parts of the facility, framed by barricades of barbed wire, from the interior courtyard heated by the warm midday sun to the guarded corridors.

Both detainees denied being fighters and claimed to have provided “humanitarian” assistance in ISIS-held territory during the war.

A prison administrator, speaking on the condition of anonymity for security reasons, told The National that all prisoners were fighters captured during ISIS's last battle in Baghouz in 2019. “These are the most dangerous fighters. We have information, which we shared with the US-led coalition, that none of them are innocent,” the official said, referring to a global coalition was formed in 2014 to defeat ISIS.

UK national Ibrahim Ageed said he was captured in 2019 near the Turkish border. The native of Leicester, in central England, said he joined ISIS in 2015 to help treat the injured at a hospital in Raqqa. He denies ever being a fighter.

Reports said he and his brother, then 25 and 23, travelled to Syria as medical students. While saying he regretted joining, he declined to comment on the actions of ISIS.

“ISIS had their reasons for what they did. I’m responsible for my own actions only,” he said.

Guards outside cells in Panorama Prison, where authorities say 4,500 men of 46 nationalities are being held over links to ISIS. Getty Images

He said he has been detained for six years without contact with his family and no communication from UK diplomats. The SDF has long urged foreign governments to repatriate their detained citizens.

The second detainee, who identified himself as Zacharia, 57, described himself as Palestinian and said he had lived in Germany for more than 15 years. He claimed to have played a humanitarian role and insisted he never had any official allegiance to ISIS – though he also refused to condemn the group’s actions.

One of the conditions for journalists being allowed to conduct interviews is that they must withhold information about the outside world – including the fall of the Assad regime and the war in Gaza. Both prisoners appeared to be cut off from external events. Zacharia said he hoped to return to Germany or Gaza, “or anywhere else at peace”.

The Kurdish-led administration is worried about inmates learning about the new Syrian government, which is led by HTS, an al Qaeda affiliate until 2016.

Officials say this news would boost the morale of inmates. They say they considers HTS’s ideology to be very similar to that of the militant groups they have fought for years.

Dozens of kilometres from Hassakeh, Jihan Hanan, head of Al Hol Camp for families of ISIS members, told The National that detainees from the foreign section there had already packed their belongings a few days after the fall of the regime.

“They thought Jawlani was going to open the gates and liberate them,” she said. Interim President Ahmad Al Shara, who led the HTS in the assault that toppled the Assad regime, formerly used the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed Al Jawlani.

The Kurdish-led authorities have raised concerns after reports of a US troop withdrawal from Syria under President Donald Trump. “ISIS is only waiting for this,” said Farhad Chami, head of the SDF media centre, adding that ISIS has seized weapons belonging to the Assad regime, posing a major risk.

“They're not gone, their ideology is still strong,” he said.