Australian families in convoy from Syrian camp warned they would be attacked unless they turned around

A convoy of 34 Australian women and children, linked to ISIS fighters and traveling from the al-Roj detention camp in northeast Syria, was warned against proceeding to Damascus last week. The group, escorted by Kurdish military, aimed to reach Damascus to then fly to Australia. Syrian government officials threatened to attack the convoy if it crossed into government-controlled territory, roughly 50km from the camp. The warning was relayed to Kurdish security forces, who control the area near the Iraqi border where the camp is located. The Syrian government issued the threat because the Australian government failed to coordinate with them regarding the convoy's movement.

The US military has begun withdrawing from a key base in northeastern Syria, Qasrak, and redeploying its forces to northern Iraq. The pullout is expected to be completed in several weeks. Heavy machinery and personnel were seen moving out of the base on Monday, bound for the Kurdish region of northern Iraq. This marks the first phase of a withdrawal that has been planned since at least January. The US had previously reduced its military presence in Syria from 1,500 personnel in July to around 900 currently. The Syrian army gained control of the al-Shaddadi base on February 15, prompting the US to initiate this withdrawal.