2,200 Russians fighting for terror groups in Syria, Iraq: Official
Some 2,200 Russian nationals have joined the terrorist groups operating in crisis-hit Syria and Iraq, the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov says.
“At the time being, around 2,200 people from Russia are engaged in fighting in Syria and Iraq,” Syromolotov told Russia’s TASS news agency on Tuesday.
“Among them, about 500 came from Europe, where they had earlier obtained citizenship, residence permit or refugee status,” he said.
The Russian official also voiced concern about the threat the foreign terrorists in the Middle Eastern states pose to their home country upon possible return.
“It’s clear that they bring along not only their terrorist potential itself, but also radical ideas, a source for negative ideological impact on the society, especially on its most vulnerable members,” Syromolotov said.
He further said that Moscow is vigilantly analyzing the aggressive statements issued by the Takfiri ISIL terrorist group – which controls parts of Syria and Iraq – on spreading its acts of terror to Northern Caucasus and in Central Asia.
Earlier this year, the US National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) said in its latest estimate that more than 20,000 people from various countries, including many Westerners, have joined ISIL and other extremist groups in Syria.
Foreign militants from over 90 countries, including at least 3,400 people from Western countries and more than 150 Americans, have traveled to Syria to join the terrorist groups there, the NCTC added.
Western countries and their regional allies, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, have been giving financial, logistical and military support to the militant groups fighting to oust the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since 2011.
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