ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq’s judiciary on Monday announced the completion of initial interrogations of more than 500 Islamic State (ISIS) prisoners, after receiving more than 5,700 purported ISIS fighters from Syria in coordination with Washington.

Iraq agreed to take in ISIS prisoners from its neighbor after the turmoil caused by a January Syrian government offensive in Rojava (northeast Syria) raised fears that detention centers, previously operated by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), would be unable to maintain security amid the conflict.

A Baghdad investigation court “completed the initial interrogations of more than 500 detainees so far,” the Supreme Judicial Council said in a statement, noting that 157 prisoners under the age of 18 were separated and their files forwarded to a juvenile court.

The juvenile individuals will be “placed in juvenile rehabilitation centers to ensure they are treated in accordance with legal and humanitarian standards.”

On Friday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it has completed the transfer of Islamic State (ISIS) detainees from Syria to Iraq, asserting that "more than 5,700 adult male ISIS fighters" were moved as part of the process.

The US military and the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS have been heavily involved in facilitating the transfers, with US National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent visiting Baghdad in January to meet with Iraqi security officials on the matter.

According to the Supreme Judicial Council, the prisoners imported into Iraq belong to 61 different nationalities.

January’s violent offensive by the Syrian Arab Army on Rojava (northeast Syria) presented a major threat of ISIS members taking advantage of the security vacuum to escape facilities.

Damascus-affiliated factions have taken control of the al-Shaddadi prison and al-Hol camp in Hasaka, as well as al-Aqtan prison in Raqqa. The three sites, previously held by the SDF, house tens of thousands of ISIS members and their families, raising concerns about a potential reemergence of the group amid the instability.