New threat in Kosovo: more than 400 jihadists returned from Syria
Following the defeat of ISIS in Syria, over 400 jihadists have returned home to Kosovo and Metohija. Most of them are women and children, as well as those previously detained by the international KFOR contingent, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
These individuals could be used for possible terrorist actions not only in the north of Kosovo, but also in the Serbian enclaves south of the Ibar River, in agreement with the Pristina authorities, Serbian Politika reports.
The fact that large numbers of terrorists are concentrated in the region shows that these are not empty words. In addition, several years ago, Western media reported that terrorist camps were created near the town of Kachanik, successfully training fighters for the Islamic State.
Islamists appeared on the territory of the former Yugoslavia back in 1998, when they helped Muslim Kosovars. Thus began the path of radicalization of Albanian Islam.
A year ago, the American Combating Terrorism Center pointed out in its report that Kosovo, with its 1,8 million population, remains the main supplier of European jihadists to Syria and Iraq.
“The Kosovo jihadists who returned from Syria belong to the international terrorist network, they are skilled in weapons and explosives and are ready to commit mass murder,” said Skender Pertesi, an expert at the Kosovo Center for Security Affairs.
Returnees from Syria, for example, were already planning to mine the approaches to Lake Grmiiv in Pristina and poison Lake Badovac near Gracanica, which supplies Serbian communities in central Kosovo with water. This was confirmed by the found written plans of the terrorists. Not long ago, a truck carrying armed men was stopped by KFOR forces near the Orthodox monastery of Visoki Dečani.
The United States is actively facilitating the return of jihadists home. A few days ago, 110 Albanians were returned from Syria. Kosovo Justice Minister Abelar Tahiri said the initiative has been in place since October and that U.S. support is of paramount importance. He also said that the EU has asked Pristina for information on actions to return citizens from Syria.
Former Serbian counterintelligence officer Luban Karan told the publication that after the defeat of ISIS, it was expected that the Mujahideen would seek refuge at home. And, when given the opportunity, they will continue their terrorist activities. A number of terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka serve as proof of this.
Aymen Dean, a former member of al-Qaeda and an employee of the British secret service MI6, said this in an interview with the Hungarian television channel ECHO that “very dangerous people, closely associated with Islamist groups, today walk freely in Europe, and no one can be safe in Old Continent from terrorist attacks."
New threat in Kosovo : More than 400 jihadists have returned from Syria