Foreign fighters in the Syrian civil war
[6][7][8][9] Most of the foreign fighters in Syria are drawn to the jihadist ideology, although experts note that religion is not the only motivation: From ignorant novices who view the trips as a rite of passage, die-hard militants looking for combat and martyrdom, and individuals who go for humanitarian reasons but get drawn into conflict, individuals become foreign fighters for a range of reasons: boredom; intergenerational tensions; the search for greater meaning in life; perceived adventure; attempts to impress the local community or the opposite sex; a desire for increased credibility; to belong or gain peer acceptance; disillusionment with their own home country; revenge; or misguided conflict experience expectations.
[31][32][33][34][35] Hundreds of leftists have become foreign fighters in the Syrian Democratic Forces, with most joining the International Freedom Battalion of the People's Protection Units (YPG),[36] out of a mixture of opposition to the Islamic State and willingness to defend the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
[37] Most fighters in the various non-regime factions travel to Turkey first before crossing the border, with somewhat lesser contingents coming from Lebanon and even fewer from Jordan and Iraq;[38] some use forged passports to avoid the attention of the authorities.
[44] In November 2014, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2178, which enjoined member states to actively suppress Sunni jihadist movements and prevent the travel of their recruits.
[47] On 3 July 2013, it was reported that Syrian aircraft had dropped leaflets over areas in Idlib province calling on both rebels to turn themselves over to the authorities and for foreign fighters to return to their countries.
[78] Olsen added that "the concern going forward from a threat perspective is there are individuals traveling to Syria, becoming further radicalised, becoming trained and then returning as part of really a global jihadist movement to Western Europe and, potentially, to the United States.
[86] The Norwegian Defence Research Establishment's Thomas Hegghammer estimated in November 2013 that between 1,132 and 1,707 Europeans from 12 such countries had gone to Syria to fight, with a majority from France (200–400), the United Kingdom (200–300) and Belgium (100–300).
[89] According to the Syrian Arab Army, by September 2014 a total of 54,000 foreign jihadists had come to fight, with the largest groups being from Russia (14,000), Saudi Arabians (12,000), Lebanese (9,000), Iraqis, and Tunisians.
[90] Foreign fighters tend to join different groups depending on nationality: for example, Tunisians[90] and Western-born Muslims favor the Islamic State, while Algerians and Moroccans prefer the al-Nusra Front.
[citation needed] Some jihadist groups are dominated by a single nationality, as is the case with the Caucasus Emirate (Chechens) and the Turkistan Islamic Party (Uyghurs), or the pro-government Afghan Shia Liwa Fatemiyoun.
A 7 December 2015 report by the Soufan Group gave estimates for the number of foreign fighters in Syria and Iraq by their country and region of origin based on information dated between 2014 and 2015.
For instance, in January 2015 Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada announced the deaths of two of its fighters in defense of Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in Damascus, and the militia's involvement in the 2015 Southern Syria offensive was documented by the Iraqi TV station Al-Anwar 2.
[111] In 2017 it was estimated that 1623 Moroccans and 2000 Moroccan-Europeans had travelled to join the Islamic State caliphate in the Syrian Civil War, which along with other fighters from MENA countries contributed a significant force to ISIS.
[158] Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad (Тавҳид ва Жиҳод),[159] also called Jannat Oshiklari,[160] is a largely Uzbek group active in northern Syria that was led by Abu Saloh.
[239][240] According to Georgia's State Security Service, around 50 Georgian citizens, principally from the Kist (Chechen)-populated Pankisi Gorge, had joined the Islamist groups in Syria and Iraq as of June 2016.
[279][280] Doğu Türkistan Bülteni Haber Ajansı said that Russians bombed the family of Uyghur fighters in Idlib and the TIP retaliated by firing rockets against Iranian militias.
[322] Besides JMA, numerous other small factions and groups involving Russian-speaking foreign fighters, including some with links to the North Caucasus, are active in parts of Syria and Iraq.
[334][335][336] A report by the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague (ICCT) from April 2016 shows that there is a total of 3,922-4,294 foreign fighters from EU Member States of whom 30 percent have returned to their home countries.
EUROPOL Director Rob Wainright issued his 2013 report and said that the returning fighters "could incite other volunteers to join the armed struggle", as well as use their training, combat experience, knowledge and contacts to conduct such activities within the EU.
[343] Norway's Thomas Hegghammer issued a report that suggested one in nine Westerners who fight in foreign jihadist insurgencies end up becoming involved in attack plots back home.
[368] On October 16, 2019, a German National going by the name Konstantin Gedig AKA "Andok Cotkar" was killed by a Turkish Airstrike while serving with the YPG International branch outside of Sere Kaniye.
The network, whose activities extend to Morocco, Belgium, France, Tunisia, Turkey, Libya, Mali, Indonesia, and Syria, is headed by Melilla resident Mustafa Maya Amaya, who funneled recruits to the ISIS, the Al Nusrah Front and AQIM.
The cell leader, Benaissa Laghmouchi Baghdadi, had spent eight months in Syria and also had ties to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) in Mali.
[389] In March 2018 Kurdish authorities reported they had captured 41 IS supporters with either Swedish citizenship or residence permit in Sweden, of which 5 had key positions in the organisation and one was the head of the ISIL propaganda efforts.
[394] On 3 August 2013, two Lebanese-Swedish brothers, Hassan and Moatasem Deeb, were killed in a rebel assault on the Abu Zeid army checkpoint near Qalaat al-Hosn, according to their cousin and a Tripoli cleric.
[403] An ISIL video released by British-based Abu Muthanna al Yemeni claimed "We have brothers from Bangladesh, from Iraq, from Cambodia, Australia, U.K."[77] In November, Regnum reported that "White Widow" Samantha Lewthwaite, who had fought in Syria the previous month, was shot dead by a Russian voluntary sniper while she was fighting for the Ukrainian volunteer battalion Aidar during the War in Donbass.
[422] The Crown Prosecution Service warned in 2014 that "any British resident travelling to take part in fighting will face criminal charges", although Charles Farr, head of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism, said that the government did not want to target those with humanitarian aims, and would exercise judgement in such cases.
[429] There were also Australians[430] and citizens of the United States fighting for the Syrian opposition camp,[431] despite possible prosecution by their government for terrorism amid fears they could return home and carry out attacks.
The Prime Minister also confirmed that the Government maintained a watchlist of 30 to 40 "people of concern in the foreign fighter context" including individuals who had traveled to Syria to engage with ISIS.
[106] Other Muslim contingents included: South and Central Asians (Afghans, Bangladeshis and Pakistanis), Westerners (Belgian, British, French, U.S.,[38] The core foreign support lies with the Al Qaeda-linked ISIS, which is in opposition to the Islamic Front and other non-Islamist groups.
