France says ‘particularly dangerous’ jihadist recruiter held

PARIS, France – A “particularly dangerous” man suspected of recruiting jihadists and cultivating links with terrorist groups in Syria has been arrested in Turkey and handed over to French authorities, France’s interior minister said on Thursday, September 11.

Mourad Fares was arrested on August 16 in Turkey and taken into custody in France on Wednesday, Bernard Cazeneuve said in a statement.

Cazeneuve described Fares as a “particularly dangerous individual close to jihadist terrorist movements,” including the Islamic State of Syria and Iraq and Al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate Al-Nusra.

Fares, who went to Syria in July last year and had an international arrest warrant issued against him, had a “key role in recruiting French youths in Strasbourg and Toulouse and sending them to Syria,” Cazeneuve said.

France and a number of European countries have expressed concern over radicalized young people leaving to fight in Iraq and Syria amid fears they could pose a security risk on their return.

Paris recently unveiled a bill to prevent aspiring jihadists from travelling to Syria, including a ban of up to 6 months on foreign travel for individuals suspected of radicalization and giving authorities powers to temporarily confiscate and invalidate their passports. – Rappler.com