A report to be delivered on December 9 by Gilles de Kerchove, the EU’s Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, says that between 1,500 and 1,750 Islamic fundamentalists who left Europe to fight alongside ISIS in Iraq and Syria in recent years have been sent back to Europe to carry out “specific missions.”
A December 9 report in Britain’s Express newspaper noted that an estimated 5,000 Islamic extremists traveled from Europe to Syria and Iraq to fight alongside ISIS, with about 15-20 percent of those being killed during fighting.
An estimated 30-35 percent of those who left Europe to fight with ISIS have been sent back to Europe with “specific missions” presumed to be terrorist in nature. Those remaining will stay in Syria and Iraq to fight.
The Express cited a statement de Kerchove made earlier this month in which he said that it is impossible to know for sure how many Isamic militants were already in Europe.
The EU official, who is a lawyer from Belgium, said, “We have to be prepared because some of them will come to Europe. They may try to come back home and we don’t want to repeat the mistake we made in the late 80s when the Russians left Afghanistan and we left these mujahideen in the wild.”
De Kerchove added: ”The physical caliphate ... is collapsing but we still have the virtual caliphate and this allows the organization to direct attacks." “So far the terrorist organizations have not used the Internet as a weapon, to mount an attack through the Internet,” he continued, indicating such possible ISIS targets as nuclear power stations, dams, electricity grids, or even air traffic control systems.
De Kerchove continued, ”It has not happened so far ... but I don't exclude that before five years we will be confronted by this.”
http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/europe/item/24810-eu-report-isis-has-sent-up-to-1-750-terrorists-to-europe
A December 9 report in Britain’s Express newspaper noted that an estimated 5,000 Islamic extremists traveled from Europe to Syria and Iraq to fight alongside ISIS, with about 15-20 percent of those being killed during fighting.
An estimated 30-35 percent of those who left Europe to fight with ISIS have been sent back to Europe with “specific missions” presumed to be terrorist in nature. Those remaining will stay in Syria and Iraq to fight.
The Express cited a statement de Kerchove made earlier this month in which he said that it is impossible to know for sure how many Isamic militants were already in Europe.
The EU official, who is a lawyer from Belgium, said, “We have to be prepared because some of them will come to Europe. They may try to come back home and we don’t want to repeat the mistake we made in the late 80s when the Russians left Afghanistan and we left these mujahideen in the wild.”
De Kerchove added: ”The physical caliphate ... is collapsing but we still have the virtual caliphate and this allows the organization to direct attacks." “So far the terrorist organizations have not used the Internet as a weapon, to mount an attack through the Internet,” he continued, indicating such possible ISIS targets as nuclear power stations, dams, electricity grids, or even air traffic control systems.
De Kerchove continued, ”It has not happened so far ... but I don't exclude that before five years we will be confronted by this.”
http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/europe/item/24810-eu-report-isis-has-sent-up-to-1-750-terrorists-to-europe
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