U.S. Forces Thwart Near-Catastrophic Prison Break of 6,000 ISIS Fighters in Syria
By Ben Smith | 7:05 AM on February 19, 2026The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of RedState.com.
U.S. forces prevented what officials described as a near-catastrophic prison break involving nearly 6,000 ISIS detainees held in northern Syria, according to an exclusive report published Tuesday.
The detainees were being held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces as fighting and instability in the region raised concerns that prison security could collapse. ISIS lost its territorial caliphate in 2019, but thousands of fighters have remained detained in Syria since then.
A senior U.S. intelligence official described the detainees as “the worst of the worst.”
According to the report, U.S. intelligence officials began assessing in late October that Syria’s political transition could tip into disorder and create conditions for a mass escape. The situation intensified in early January as fighting that began in Aleppo spread eastward, straining SDF forces responsible for guarding the detention facilities.
Officials warned that if the prisons were overrun, the consequences would be immediate.
https://redstate.com/ben-smith/2026/02/19/us-forces-thwart-near-catastrophic-prison-break-of-6000-isis-fighters-in-syria-n2199325
