ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s experience in reintegrating citizens from conflict zones was highly appreciated during the 34th session of the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) in Vienna, Kazinform reported on May 22.
Photo credit: Arnur Rakhimbekov/Kazinform
Representatives from the UN, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Austrian Foreign Ministry commended Kazakhstan’s efforts in this area.
Ambassador-at-Large of the Kazakh Foreign Ministry Stanislav Vassilenko highlighted that between 2019 and 2021, five stages of the Jusan operation led to the repatriation of 754 citizens from Syria and Iraq, including 37 men, 191 women, and 526 children. Dozens of others returned independently or with indirect support.
He added that Kazakhstan’s successful reintegration model was showcased at an specialized interregional conference in Astana on April 30, and will be presented again during UN Counter-Terrorism Week in 2026 in New York.
One of the Jusan repatriates, Rimma Zhunusova, addressed the UN Office in Vienna, sharing her personal story of living in Iraq for seven years amid military actions, where the leaders of ISIS (a group banned in Kazakhstan) simply fled, leaving women and children.
Zhunusova returned home with her four children under the Jusan operation and described her successful reintegration: she is now employed, and her children attend regular schools.
She urged other governments to repatriate women and children from conflict zones, warning that without intervention, these children may be at risk of joining terrorist groups.
