INTERVIEW: Former UN Special Rapporteur Fionnuala Ní Aoláin on the Syrian prisons holding Australians

Until the start of this year, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin was the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. In July 2023 she visited northeastern Syria to inspect the Kurdish-run prisons and camps holding tens of thousands of foreign I-S suspects and their families, including at least 55 Australians. Her visit was billed as the first time an independent human rights expert had been given this access. She spoke to SBS Dateline’s Colin Cosier for the documentary, Finding Yusuf, and this is an extended version of that interview. And you can watch the two-part Dateline documentary, Finding Yusuf, on SBS On Demand.