The Syrian Ministry of Defence stated that it had extended the ceasefire with the SDF for 15 days, citing a notable reason: "The ceasefire period has been extended due to the US process of transferring ISIS prisoners from prisons under SDF control to Iraq." (AA, 25 January 2026)

Why is the US transferring ISIS prisoners from Syria to Iraq? 

The ISIS prisoners were in prisons controlled by the SDF, and now those prisons are coming under the control of the Syrian army. So, can the SDF control those prisons, but the Syrian army cannot? If so, why is the US saying that "the SDF is no longer our primary partner against ISIS"? Or is there another issue?

The US's 'useful enemy': ISIS

ISIS: Black Terror (Kaynak, 2014) I wrote in my book that ISIS is a "useful enemy" for the US. When ISIS was still called the Islamic State of Iraq, the US killed its leaders one by one, ensuring that Baghdadi took over the organisation. Baghdadi was released from a US prison in Iraq and became the leader of ISIS.

All that aside, in 2016, Trump said, "Obama is the founder of ISIS." 

Therefore, the US's transfer of ISIS from Syria to Iraq is an issue that deserves serious attention.

The ISIS-Colani connection

These days, for some reason, it is being propagated that HTŞ leader Colani has no connection to ISIS. Why is that? Is it to reinforce the identity of HTŞ leader Colani as Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Shara?

However, Colani does have ties to ISIS, and both Colani himself and the ISIS leader Baghdadi, who appointed him, have stated this:

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Colani openly stated that he came to Syria after being appointed by the leadership of the Islamic State of Iraq (the former name of ISIS). In fact, an audio recording released by ISIS leader Baghdadi clearly states that Colani was appointed: "We appointed Colani and sent him from Iraq to Damascus with a group of our children to meet with our cells in Damascus. Plans were developed for them, and policies for movement and action were outlined. We paid their salaries every month and provided them with militants."

This is the truth: Colani was sent from Iraq to Syria in 2011 by ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and established the Nusra Front. The Nusra Front operated in Syria under allegiance to Baghdadi until 2013. Colani rejected allegiance in 2013 and parted ways with ISIS.

ISIS assigned to Haşdi Şabi operations

ISIS, Baghdadi, Nusra, Colani... Let us ask again: Why did the US decide to transfer thousands of ISIS members from Syrian prisons to prisons in Iraq?

Let us also recall that the US administration is currently attempting to prevent a possible Nuri al-Maliki government in Iraq. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with the current Iraqi Prime Minister Sudani and said, "A government controlled by Iran is unacceptable." US Ambassador Tom Barrack said, "Iraq must establish a government that continues its cooperation with the West." US President Trump said, "Because of his crazy policies and ideologies, if Maliki is elected, the US will no longer help Iraq." 

Will the US use ISIS in Iraq to fight "Iranian influence"? Will ISIS fight against Hashdi Shabi? Because Hashdi Shabi is, after all, an official unit affiliated with the Iraqi army. An open operation against this force would mean war between Syria and Iraq, or even between the US and Iraq. But if ISIS is deployed, this formality will not arise.

The US's goal of combating "Iranian influence"

The US assigning ISIS the role of Hashd al-Shaabi in Iraq is effectively assigning it the role of Iran.

The US wants to establish a new Middle East order under Israeli hegemony and guarantee Israel's security. To this end, it is trying to eliminate Iran's influence in the countries of the region and to liquidate the organisations it sees as its "proxies". This explains its efforts to crush Hamas in Gaza, disarm Hezbollah in Lebanon, weaken the Houthis in Yemen, and overthrow Assad in Syria. Now it wants to combat the "Iranian influence" in Iraq. 

For this reason, it is moving its "useful enemy," ISIS, from Syria to Iraq.