Foreign “Militants” in Syria Pose Threat to EU, Allies

The growing number of young Europeans joining Al Qaeda-linked “militants” in Syria poses a potential threat to the EU and its allies, France and Belgium have warned.

“The phenomenon is particularly worrying,” French Interior Minister Manuel Valls alongside his Belgian counterpart Joelle Milquet said on Thursday.

Between 1,500 and 2,000 youths have gone to Syria, they told a joint press conference, Al-Alam reported.

Earlier this year, a report by King’s College London estimated that 600 Europeans might have joined “rebel forces” in Syria since early 2011.

 “For Belgians, it is between 100 and 150,” Milquet said.

 “For the French, it is slightly more than 400, of which 184 are currently in Syria,” Valls said, adding that 14 had died, 80 had come back and 100 wanted to leave.

Now the situation has changed, he said; “Most of those going say they want to fight in groups linked to Al Qaeda.”

For the moment, there appears to be no immediate threat, but that does not mean, “We can drop our guard because the extremist groups have grown stronger and our nationals are becoming dangerous,” he said.

Both France and Belgium are working together on the problem and have held meetings with Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Denmark to coordinate a response.

R.S