Dutch warn IS collapse could see rise of terror threat back home

More jihadist fighters could return home to The Netherlands increasing the risk of terror attacks if the Islamic State group is defeated in battle, the Dutch counterterrorism agency warns.

“The number of returning jihadist fighters will pick up should the ‘caliphate’ be militarily defeated or collapse,” the agency says in its latest “Terrorism Threat Assessment”.

“An increased number of returnees will most likely strengthen the jihadist movement within The Netherlands and therefore increase the threat posed by this group,” it says.

About 270 Dutch people left to join the jihadists, and about 40 former fighters are known to have returned from combat in Syria and Iraq, where most have been fighting against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime.

Another 190 Dutch citizens including women and children older than nine are still in Syria and Iraq, the report says, while 44 fighters have been killed.

The current status of a “substantial threat” of a terror attack in The Netherlands is being maintained, the report says.

Top Dutch anti-terror czar Dick Schoof tells the NOS public broadcaster that any jihadists now returning to The Netherlands were “hardened fighters.”

“They have deliberately chosen to join a terror organisation. Upon return they are arrested at once,” Schoof adds.

“They say they regret their actions. But we subject them to thorough investigation,” he says.

The report also warns of increased violence by both left and right-wing extremists in the run-up to next year’s parliamentary polls in March.

— AFP