Syria Main Destination for Extremists: The Independent

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Syria has become the main destination for extremist militants, replacing Pakistan and Somalia to be the “preferred front line”, British daily The Independent reported. “The bloody uprising against Bashar al-Assad is creating a new wave of jihadists in Britain, with Syria now the main destination for militant Muslims wishing to fight abroad,” the daily said in its Wednesday’s edition. The Independent quoted security agencies as saying: “Syria has replaced Pakistan and Somalia as the preferred front line where Islamist volunteers can experience immediate combat with relatively little official scrutiny.” The daily said that the “worrying development” was that some extremists groups, like al-Qaeda, have become “dominants forces” against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. The news paper also reported that the number of extremists from UK, who are engaged in Syria fight, is rising. “More than 100 British Muslims are believed to have gone to fight in Syria with the numbers continuing to rise. The situation presents a unique problem for Western security and intelligence services. In Syria, unlike Pakistan and Somalia, they have to keep track of jihadists who are being backed by Britain and its allies.” “The Syrian rebels are drawing recruits from a variety of national backgrounds in the UK. Only a handful of those who have returned from the fighting there have been arrested and all for a specific offence: their alleged role in the kidnapping of a British freelance photographer, John Cantlie, in Idlib province last summer. Others who have been taking part in the armed struggle against the Assad regime are not deemed to be doing anything illegal,” the daily added. British Prime Minister, David Cameron announced earlier this week that if the EU rescinds the easing of the rules, the UK will go ahead with supplying more lethal weapons to the “democratic” opposition.

Source: Newspapers 14-03-2013 - 10:56 Last updated 14-03-2013 - 10:56

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