“European terrorists” – who are they?

Recently, Germany’s Minister of Home Affairs Hans-Peter Friedrich announced that there are quite a few Europeans in Syrian militants’ formations. Experts are not inclined to overdramatize this situation. However, the presence of Europeans among terrorists in Syria is a sign that something in not very perfect in the policy that European governments are now holding.

Germany’s special services claim that the total number of Europeans in the Syrian opposition’s detachments is about 700 people, but some experts believe that the real number is bigger. The main threat that this fact is presenting for Europe is that these people may set terror acts in Europe if they return there.

There are several Russians in the ranks of the Syrian opposition as well. The head of Russia’s Federal Security Bureau Alexander Bortnikov, who is also the head of Russia’s Federal Anti-terror Committee, estimates their number as about 200 people. He says that foreign mercenaries come to the Syrian opposition mainly from Afghanistan and Pakistan, from former Soviet states – and from Europe.

 “Many people in the Syrian opposition are those who can be called international terrorists. They are “rebels”who have already taken part in armed conflicts in several parts of the world – for example, in Libya.”

The EU countries are now trying to toughen their laws in order to make it very hard for Europeans who have fought on the side of the Syrian opposition to return to Europe. Thus, Germany is going to put forward a suggestion that people who are suspected of terrorist activity should be banned from entry to Europe for two years.

Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Russian newspaper “Zavtra” Vladislav Shurygin says:

 “I believe that the majority of Europeans or US citizens who go to Syria to fight on the side of the opposition are in fact natives of Muslim countries who have been living in Europe or the US for a long time and probably have received European or US citizenship. For example, I know that quite a few citizens of the UK have fought in Chechnya on the side of the terrorists.”

“In fact, it is very hard for European authorities to control the destiny of a person who has left Europe,” Mr. Shurygin continues. “European authorities may know that a certain person, for example, has left the UK for Turkey. But from Turkey, he may go, say, to a terrorist training camp in Pakistan, and from there – to Syria, and it would be very hard, if possible at all, for European authorities to trace this.” 

One of the key problems is the discrepancy between European law’s liberalism and how extremists use these laws. In Europe, the terrorist spend a calm and quiet life. They like that they have a calm and quiet bases. The majority of terrorists completely accept Europe as such a base as long as their families can live and children can get education there.

There is an opinion that Europe turns a blind eye to the involvement of its citizens in the Syrian conflict by provoking its “Islamists”. However, director of the Centre for Strategic Environment Ivan Konovalov does not share such a point of view.

Source: Voice of Russia

M.D